Lost Stories of Warcraft
by Video Game Fan Writer
Summary: These are stories about the uncommon characters of Warcraft that fought for survival through the events of Warcraft.
1. Chapter 1 Vorioia

Most of the legends of Azeroth are already written in books, told in inns, and are reenacted in plays, but history is written by the winners, where would the Banshee Queen Sylvanas Windrunner be if she hadn't liberated herself and accepted her defeat. Where would Varian Wrynn be if he died in the sands of the arena? We, the survivors, some of us are happy that we fell into the background of these great hero's. We can only hope someone will listen to our story, even though we didn't fight our way to greatness. That doesn't mean we didn't fight for our survival.

My name is Vorioia Ace, for what it's worth I am married now, but I can only speak one word at a time. I can write though, so I'm writing in hopes someone will read and understand. I've been able to sing for quite some time now, but speaking I am stopped. For the most part I choose not to speak but forming the words without stuttering takes effort. There's also this cold icy chill the comes over my throat and the sound won't break through my wind pipe. So, I've gotten by by taking these long pauses to make my point. I can still write, so I'm writing now. Before, while aboard the giant necroplis the banshee's taught me to connect my words without the pauses, but the words need melody, harmony, or this cold chill will form, take over, and I may not be able to breathe for a few minutes. But that came later, when I was able to form words without effort or without song, I was almost completely tone death, but I miss my voice, I miss being able to speak to my husband, to anyone. How did I get like this, well, if you want to know that, I'll have to start from the beginning? This is a forgotten story of Warcraft.

I, like most people I was born human, a child overprotected by my three older brothers, my father killed by savage troll tribes that littered the forest to the north, before I was born. My brothers say he was a strong man with enough strength to match or break any orc, but the people with him were his greatest asset. They knew how to fight as one with heavy shields that could trap in anyone more skilled with blades. That is why we humans beat them, not because we were stronger, faster, or more skilled. Because we knew how to fight as a single unit, but trolls use different tactics, my father, and his team were shot down with arrows on a patrol. This was the image my brothers gave to me, but he died before I can remember. I remember myself so strong and full of life, Vorioia Pride was my name, and even as a child I wanted to be a hero like how I envisioned my father and so did my brothers. So, I was tougher than most girls, I had very few friends, and was more often than not, short tempered. When I first met John he was so fragile, soft spoken, and would cry even when grownups would yell at him a little. If there was anyone that was the polar opposite of the image I had of my father or how boys should act it was John. John Ace had two sisters one older and one younger, Jandice the older and Ada the younger. Jandice knew quite a bit about the arcane but didn't display it as much as she loved to talk about it. When people would ask her to show them some magic she would show off some tricks, and for a long time that's what she did, magic tricks, with traps, mirrors, and sleight of hand movements. Hardly anything that could be used in combat, but the other mages did say she had the gift, she just chose to be more of a magician then a proper mage.

John's parents were somewhat poor, but once Jandice's shows started getting more and more attention from town folks she started to get attention from the nobles of the Barov family and she was adopted into them. With a whole bunch of gold for John's family of course.

John on the other hand, he was so shy and somewhat afraid of his parents. They said, Jandice Barov barely acknowledged them as their daughter, and that he should forget he had a sister. When we were kids I had helped him when I saw him being bullied by a bunch of girls, but I told him that I wouldn't be doing that again if he didn't stand up for himself. I told him, "Just get really mad and hit one of them as hard as you can."

I remember I saw him getting bullied like he always did, and he looked over at me, and I shook my head in disapproval. I wasn't going to help him, and next thing I knew one of the girl's hairs was on fire. John ran away but I never laughed harder in my life. The bullies' friends did get her some water. I ran after John. John was crying like he always did, but I told him not to be sad, those girls shouldn't mess with him again. He wasn't crying because of what he did, he was crying because he was going to have to change schools and he might be sold to the Barov family if his power developed. So, I connived the girls that were bullying him not to say anything. But John would have to show me his magic whenever I asked. Even though John was a child he could kindle sparks and fire, water and ice at a moment's notice. I had seen arcane magic before, but to see shards of water and ice, or sparks of fire and heat form in his hands so slowly was so pretty. Most mages did it so fast I couldn't really know what was happening. I told John; sooner or later the other mages are going to find out that you have magic. They will be able to "feel it" so to speak.

Stratholme was a pretty big town and we eventually told his parents and since his older sister was basically sold to the Barov family, they didn't want that fate for John. With the money they got from Janice he was sent to South Shore Beach to an acquaintance of the Barov family that would acknowledge his family and protect his home, Kel Thuzad.

So, I said goodbye to my friend, I was sad and missed him, but I didn't have the drive I do now. We were both children so when I reached my teens I thought about him a lot.

But a few years later he was back in full mage robes with a proud strong demeanor. I never realized how attracted I could be to someone. I mean I had crushes before but seeing him come back so handsome and capable, women couldn't leave him alone. He swore his life to the people of Stratholme and despite him now being one of the most skill mages in town he was still too young to join the guard. For once I felt like the shy one, but he saw me. Out of all the people in our city he still wanted to spend time with me and my family. My brothers weren't too happy about it; they were always over protective of me which might have been the reason why all my would-be crushes never had a chance. I remember John never even wanting to spend time in my house. My brothers sharpen their swords and flexed their muscles, but John wasn't even phased by it. Laughed off every joke about mage dresses and even beat my youngest brother in an arm wrestling match. When we finally had some time to ourselves he told me how he felt. That he had thought about me every day he was training, and once he got done with the Arcane University he would marry me. We made love that night, but it didn't seem fair to me that he had just gotten there and now he was leaving again. We spent about three weeks together being a couple and when he was away he wrote me about how his life was at the University. But a year after that both of his parents were killed by highway bandits. He came back for the funeral and it turned out that he had taken up drinking while at the University.

I thought it was because of his parents had just died that he was drinking so heavy, but he told me he had been drinking way before that. His letters were so kind and sweet I never thought he could be like this. He tried to make an advance at me when he was drunk. He told me that I was going to be his soon anyways and he tried to hit me with one of those sticks you beat your kids with. I knew I was stronger than he was, but I knew he knew magic and I was somewhat afraid. I was able to take away the stick and kick him to the floor. John threw a tantrum, yelled, and froze my feet to the floor, it was so cold. I had never fought a mage before, but I had fought more boys and men to not lose. I broke out of the ice and clocked him under the chin with the stick. He fell backwards falling back like a broken wooden doll. I thought the impact with the floor would have killed him, but he was out. I heard a snore from him and carried him off to my bed. I slept in my rocking chair watching him for a few hours making sure he didn't choke.

When he woke up, he was in pain from more of the impact with the floor, I told him, "I'm not marrying you if you think that you're going to own me. I told him that David my oldest brother had joined the king's Knights of Lordaeron and I could easily join as well."

I told him that my mother was happy that I had decided to marry John, but if this is what married life is going to be like I would take my chances killing orcs, highwaymen, and trolls for the King.

John cried just like he did when he was a kid, "Both of my parents are dead, how am I supposed to act and now you're the second woman to have beaten me in a duel." He complained.

"At least you knew them both, you know. You know that my father died before I could remember. So, I never really knew what married life was like." I told him.

John apologized for what happen and promised he would never use magic on me again. He didn't walk as proud as he used to when he first came home, but it was more like we were kids again. He had no idea of my skill with swords and duels. I at least showed him how to use a single-handed blade and he showed me everything his master Kel'Thuzad the Demon Slayer showed him. I know John would never make a pack with demons, but he knew how to summon them, but not control them. It wasn't a complete nightmare though. I did get to test my steel on demons but there was one he could control, well, it didn't try to kill us.

A flaming horse, not a dreadsteed with horns and black scales, but with fire from its mane and tail, but an actual arcane fire horse. John told me that this horse will let you pet him, but he won't let you ride him.

I thought its flames would be hot but as I approached my hand the flames subsided like steam or like water on a frying pan. Most of its coat was red as a sunset, but it had one yellow spot from the top of his head to its mouth. The rest of the flames subsided as I touched the horses face with the rest of my body. The horse looked almost completely normal, there was a complete loss of mane and hairless tail, but he looked like a completely beautiful chestnut breed. I completely forgot that a few minutes ago John had just summoned him. John looked at me in shock, "How? How did you do that?" John asked.

"Love is the key, John. You just have to listen with your heart." Without asking I jumped on his back like I would any horse. "Does this horse have a name?" I asked.

"Master called them 'Nightmares' and even he couldn't ride one of these like you are right now. He would need to summon two, each on one foot." John explained.

"Nightmares?" I said in disapproval, "No, no, no, you can't call him that. How about Helios, it means the sun."

John shrugged, Helios turned around toward John, sprayed him in the face with frost and water from its mouth. I patted Helios on the side, "I wonder if he'll wear a saddle?"

Helios buckled, and rose up on two legs, I knew that he wasn't happy about my last statement, so I jumped off before it could knock me off. John said one word, "Dismissed."

And it was gone, in a mess of flames and ice, it hurt like a hundred bee stings in the areas it hit. But I knew this wasn't John's fault, I knew I was playing with fire and now I was the one burnt. John took me to a healer, but I was still bedridden, I needed to wear bandages in the areas the frostfire hit me.

"You're lucky you know? I've seen Kel'Thuzad use those to set entire forest on fire." John explained.

I grabbed John, "Helios, he's not some projectile to be cast into a wooded dummy. He's a mage just like you."

John nodded, "I'll try to remember that from now on." He said

By the time I fully recovered John needed to go back to the University. I received letters from John that he was able to summon two more mage horses and sent me drawings of them. One was white and blue, and another was purple, so I named them Avalanche, and Violet. Helios eventually let John ride him, but he didn't listen or go anywhere that John wanted to go. I wrote back to him and told him that there were shaman's that could ask the elements for aid, and I told him to think of his relationship with them like his relationship with his horses, not a skill that is grown with repetition.

After that people of Stratholme started hearing more and more about the war with the Orcish warlock clans, then demons, and then disease. The boarders of Stratholme where strong, there was no way they could bring an attack to our city, but many soldiers were sent away and never came back. I wrote to John that maybe I should join the guard. Not a full-fledged knight just enough to defend our people. John wrote back saying no. That he wouldn't join the Kirin Tor station because he would be sent to Kalimdor, he would join the Silver Hand as a soldier, only a two-day's ride away. He said not to join, not because I didn't know how to fight, but these new enemies were riddled with disease and I couldn't fight that off with a sword. But if I must fight, take up my brothers offer and join the Knights of Lordaeron. I knew how skilled those knights were and how heavy their armor was, but their service was to the king, and they never saw much outside combat. So, I was torn, I could defend my people here with my own sword and be married, and free to have as many children as I wanted. Or I could join the knights and leave my people to their fate, but be closer to my lover, but also our relationship would have to be kept a secret. I started writing letters to my brother and started training with the heaviest weapon I could afford. My brother taught me to use my fist and sword and shield. So, every technique I did with a two-handed sword was somewhat improvised, sometimes clumsily depending on how tired I was. I remember my mother trying to show me how to dance with a stick and ribbon and I was somewhat surprised I was able to do a lot of the same movements with a steel chain. So, I attached a chain onto my sword. I was able to spin my sword around over my head and whack the training dummies head clean off. That drew a bit of a crowd, I was a natural when it came to dance, dancing with a chain and sword was pleasing and fun. Once I heard music, but I knew I was going to need armor sooner or later. I couldn't afford to dance, spin, pull, and push in heavy armor. So, my days I spent in armor I only trained in the normal boring way, ate, slept, and if no one was looking I tried to sword dance. My mother was somewhat disappointed that I had taken up swords over dancing, but once I told her that I was joining the knights to be closer to John, she said I was just like my father, he wasn't supposed to get married either, and so she let it go. My brother came home to take me to a training camp and when I saw him I was so happy I passed out.

When I woke up I felt like the over training was finally taking its toll.

My brother said I was deathly ill; I could not go to Lordaeron like this. Every knight had their own healers to help them fight but their service was to that king and the knight that would protect him, not to a family member. The healer said even if he were to heal me on the way there I wouldn't make the trip, better yet survive training, but if I stay in bed I should recover. He said he came all the way to this commoner's city to find a promising knight, not some sickly sister. My brother wasn't too happy about that statement, he slammed the healer into the wall. "She isn't a sickly sister; she is the promising knight and we're not leaving until she is cured."

The healer tried to regain some composure, "That's not what I meant," he said, "I came along to cure simple wounds and maybe poisons, but this, didn't you smell it when you came here. She needs rest, a proper diet, and if you want a speedy recovery I'm going to need herbs. All of these things I don't have."

My brother put him down.

"They rationed out grain a few days ago." I said.

The healer shook his head, "No, empty carbs are not going to fix you, if anything it will make you worst, you need water, meat, vegetables, and a very big bed pan. I can do my best to nurse you back to health, but your brother is going to have to buy me the supplies I need. But I do have this."

The healer pulled a large metal canteen, "Nothing, never mind, it's silly." He put it back in his robes.

"If it will cure my sister let her have it." My brother said as he tried to grab it.

My brother reached for the canteen, but the healer pushed his hands away, "I got the recipe for this tonic from a bear when I was on Kalimdor. He said a bear sold it to trolls as a cure all."

My brother repressed a laugh, "A bear? Now's not the time for jokes and if it's for trolls why do you have it?"

The healer smiled and repressed a laugh, "Because one drop of this to any alcoholic beverage will get any human shit face drunk. It's made from ten different reptile and insect venom's and few poison plant roots." He said laughing.

"This isn't funny Jacob; my sister could die if you gave her that, and a bear, do you think I'm a fool, you're telling me you learned this from a talking bear. I guess the next thing you're going to tell me that a giant turtle told you the meaning of life. " My brother kneeled by my side.

"Well not like that I'm not, it was actually more of a panda. Talking bears are Furbolg's." The healer said. My brother just looked at him.

"Man, you should see the look on your face." I couldn't help but laugh either.

"Vorioia, you think this is funny too. This is not a laughing matter!" My brother demanded

"Well if it can fix me, I don't see why I shouldn't take it," I stated, "but come on, a talking panda that's just funny." I finally said.

"Yeah about that, troll's can recover from any wound and can even regenerate from torn off limbs but there not free from disease and sickness. Chen, uh, the panda, said it would put the trolls in a deathlike sleep and in three days they were cured of any illness that threaten their lives. I keep some with me if there is ever a time when your brother is slain, I would have the perfect possum remedy." The healer explained.

My brother looked at him questionably, "Have you ever tested it on anything?"

The healer half smiled, "Rats died, dogs died, one horse recovered in one day. Humans, only a single drop, but a full amount could kill her. But I know the people in this city are sick, I can feel it in my bones. Maybe I could buy some rounds and it will cure them, I mean we'd all have a pretty good time."

My brother crossed his arms and thought, "Save one shot for my sister. But we'll test drops of this remedy at the local tavern. Kalimdor, you know I will never fully understand how people can actually live there. Can you imagine if we actually packed up and moved there?"

The healer laughed and shook his head, "Right? What was that guy thinking, but fate is a strange thing, I had completely planned to sell this to local taverns but if it's a cure all for humans it will make me rich? I think I was meant to come here with you."

My brother let out a sigh, "If it cures my sister I will have to agree with you, but that's all I care about."

"Wait, what are you guys talking about? Why would we move to Kalimdor?" I asked.

"Some wizard or sage or prophet said we should pack up and move to Kalimdor, he was probably just crazy." My brother answered.

"Yet war and evil has come to our lands." The healer said.

"Our father's destroyed evil once when they came through a dark portal, now it's our time."

They left a shot for me and I put in under the floor boards and wrapped it in cloth, I wasn't trying to hide it. The remedy sitting there by my night stand made the whole room smell terrible. Wrapping it in cloth helped but it was still faint. So, they tested it. I never heard so many cries of drunkenness and singing coming from one place. I needed rest, but I couldn't really sleep with all that noise. When my brother and the healer Jacob came home they were singing, "Were going to be rich!" and passed out on the floor.

When they woke up a few of my towns people were dead from "alcohol poisoning" and some were still sick, but a lot of them were completely cured and felt that a good night of partying was just what they needed to get back on their feet.

When my brother and his healer recovered from there hangovers, they were debating whether the cure would actually fix me. There were a few people that had died that night from one drop, but not all had recovered. My brother decided to take the safe route with enough bed rest and a proper diet and for a few days I was able to walk around my house and prepare my own meals.

Then the unthinkable happen. I was woken up to the battle horn sound through the whole city; we were under attack without warning. But when I looked outside I didn't see any orcs or demons killing our towns' people, they were wearing the same armor my brother wore. One of them shot a crossbow arrow at me but I moved before it could hit me. I was still wearing a purple night gown and I couldn't put on full plate armor, but I could at least grab my sword. I ran down stairs and Jacob the healer ran through the unlocked door, "THE TONIC, WHERE IS THE TONIC?!"

I told him, "Wait, what's going on?"

He looked frantic, "Arthas, our prince, he and his knights, there killing everyone. Your brother tried to explain to him that he and his men weren't infected but Arthas killed him anyways. Don't you see he won't stop until everyone in the city is dead?!" The crossbowmen fired an arrow at Jacob's back and he fell to the ground dead, I was still armed though. While he was reloading I pledged my sword through his armor and kicked him out the front door. For a while I just hid hoping they would past my house.

"What killed this soldier, this doesn't look like a wound from an undead or demons and why hasn't this house caught flame yet." Someone loudly demanded.

I tied a really long chain to my sword and tied the other end around my wrist. "Well I could fix that. These demons do use swords you know." The guard did as he was ordered and lit a torch.

I opened the door and threw my sword at the soldier with the torch. It nailed him in the neck and I dragged him into my house as fast as I could and pulled out the sword.

The soldiers around screamed out as they saw their comrade fall and drag. I hid behind the wall in my house. "A very skillful attack, woman." Someone said.

"Arthas, was she wearing a night gown?" One of the soldiers said in disbelief.

"Arthas was it?" I said, "Prince Arthas, I'm not infected, I was sick for a few days, but I've made a full recovery. You don't need to kill me or the healthy; quite a few of us have recovered as well."

"Come on, Arthas, she's just a girl if she isn't infected we could use her in the war." One of his soldiers said.

"Have you eaten any of the grain while you've been here?" Arthas asked.

"Not lately, no." I answered.

"But you did eat the rations, yes or no?" Arthas asked.

"Yes." I finally said.

"I'm sorry, but I can't take that risk, put down your weapon and I will grant you a clean death. If you don't surrender to me and my men we will go into your house and cut you down. Besides you already killed two of my men." Arthas demanded.

"ANY OF YOU TAKE ONE STEP INTO THIS HOUSE AND YOU'RE NEXT WILL BE IN THE TWISTING NETHER!" I shouted. I heard them all stop in their tracks.

"What is your name woman?" Arthas asked.

"Vorioia Pride!" I shouted.

"Then I will let it be known that you fought and died with honor." He claimed. "Men bring me her head!"

"Wait my prince; she's just a girl trying to defend her home. We all have wives at home that would do the same if our homes were invaded." I thought at the time Arthas wouldn't listen to reason from me, but maybe he'd listen to one of his own men. "I signed on to join the fight against demons and orcs that wish nothing but war and slavery! Maybe she's infected, maybe she isn't, but if we kill her now that will make us no better than the orcs that invaded our homes. We could just walk away and if she does turn into an undead we will deal with it when the time comes! For now, let's just walk away and deal with the larger problem at hand."

I looked outside, this soldier had his hands spread out between my house and Arthas. I never knew how big Arthas was; he looked like he could knock over this whole house just by slamming into it. The other soldiers looked at each other and agreed.

"You're smart, what the heck are you doing with all them?!" I shouted. I saw him look back at me and laugh. And a second later his head was completely gone smashed like a red pumpkin.

"YOU MEN ALL KNOW HOW DANGEROUS THIS WOMAN IS AS A HUMAN. AS A UNDEAD THINK OF HOW MANY MORE OF US SHE COULD KILL IF WE DON'T DO SOMETHING NOW! I WILL GO IN THERE MYSELF IF I HAVE TO, BUT WHEN I COME OUT ALL OF YOU WILL MEET THE SAME FATE AS HIM!" Arthas smashed his hammer onto the dead soldier he just killed. I ran upstairs and grabbed the tonic. And jumped out the upper window and ran to the streets. The soldiers shot me with crossbows but missed, but Arthas came charging with his hammer. When he was just within striking distance he spin 360 degrees and strike for my body. I backed away in the nick of time and slide my sword to the back of his knees as he tried to recover his hammer. He fell landing flat on his back and head. But more of his men showed up. I ran away from them and when I got a good distance I dropped the sword on the floor and spin the sword around over my head. It hit a few of the soldiers but when it made contact with their armor, it pinged, and stopped me from building up speed. I can tell it was stinging them, but I needed to take some of these guys out. I stopped the spin by slamming the sword and chain on the floor. It was a complete miss of any of Arthas's men, but it made a loud sound that made most of the men flinch.

"Where did she learn to fight like that?!" One of the soldiers asked Arthas as he helped him recover. "Men fall back, this one's mine."

"Sometimes improving dance and swordplay is the best way to win a fight. I won't hold back this time Vorioia Pride." Arthas stated.

Arthas held his hammer with two hands and walked forward, protecting his face with the butt of his hammer. I pulled the sword by the chain and put it in my hands. "Then you will die!" I yelled

I said it almost out of breath.

I regained some composure and threw my sword at Arthas, he blocked knocking it to the right. I used that momentum with the chain to strike to the left, blocked again. With every strike the next one came faster. I never knew it, but my mother's dance lesson proved more useful in this fight than my older brother's teachings with the swords. I could feel every strike of the sword and chain and I moved with the rhythm of the dance. I could remember all the music and I felt I was moving to a beat of a song. But it was having no effect on Arthas, he was almost dancing to the same beat. Blocking every attack of my spinning blade almost like a waltz and held his hammer almost like it was a lighter woman. Finally, the blade broke in half. Arthas looked at the remains of the broken sword and looked at me, "My turn!" Arthas screamed in a creepy loud way.

He charged toward me like he did before, this time he aimed the hammer at my face. I ducked this time looking for the opening he left open before, but he hit me with the back of his weapon. I backed away, and he actually drew blood. I touched the side of my head, "You still think I'm infected?" I asked

"No, but you killed too many of my men to let you leave here alive." Arthas stated

I finally had a moment to take it all in. The areas I grew up and played were burnt, the people I knew were dead, the houses and shops I would go to were looted. Arthas had killed my brother, and for what reason, because a few people got sick? "Arthas, have you taken a good look around? This was my home; do you really think I won't kill as many of your people as I can?"

Arthas half smiled, "Why do you think I'm choosing to do this now and not later. You think I want to keep watching my back my whole life?"

I wrapped the rest of the chain around me. I realized this wasn't a fight; this was a dance, and I spin the loose end around. "Come then Prince, defend your murderous people."

Arthas spin his heavy hammer and circled me. I was somewhat surprised that he could spin that hammer while doing that same 360 strike he would always use but this time it was coming overhead. Still to slow, his hammer slammed into the cobblestone and stuck. This time he left his head completely open and I wrapped the chain twice around his overgrown neck. I could hear him choking and I whispered in his ear, "I will let it be known that you refused to listen to reason, you refused to walk away from someone who posed no danger to you. You killed women, children, and even your own men, and in the end, it was a woman in a night gown and a chain that took you down."

I felt the burning pain of an impact sting on my back, and I was knocked to the floor, I heard Arthas gasp for breath. I felt a painful sting from a cold metal spiked shield as I tried to recover. And then the demon curses that fell on me like a hundred bee stings, I couldn't see or feel. But I could feel my life slipping as I fell to the ground. One of his men took my change purse from my gown, the chain around my waist, put it into his backpack, and passed the coins around to four oddly dressed men. "Don't kill her yet, I want her head." Arthas said.

"Your highness your hurt, let me heal you." One of his priest said.

The priests healed him and the wounds on his face and neck closed. "Thank you, priest, that is much better. This woman fought honorably, she deserves a quick death, and to be remembered."

"I WON'T let you take my life!" I yelled, and I swallowed what was left from the tonic. It tasted just as bad as it smelled and burned my throat as it went down. I felt it ooze down my throat and I tried to throw it up, back out. I saw Arthas and his men hold their noses as I breathed in their direction. Then everything went numb, I fell to the ground and breathed as hard as I could, feeling the tonic burn my lungs and coughing it out. I felt myself slipping. I didn't know if this would cure me or kill me, but it felt like it was killing me, but I couldn't let him do it, I heard Arthas as I slipped away.

"So, in the end she chooses the cowards way out. Leave her; I don't need her skull to decorate my chambers." And he walked away.

"That stuff is still on her teeth, it smells worst then the undead, move the body someplace away from our men." I heard someone else say.


	2. Chapter 2 Jaundace

"It was only a few bites and scratches, but I seem to be cured of this demon's disease. The other two in my squad weren't so lucky." John said as he held the glass beaker of blue bubbling high elf anti-bodies in front of his eyes.

"Yes, you're not even a high elf yet you managed to use the sunwell to cure yourself and the other members of your squad. How did you know to come here?" Lucien asked.

John half smiled and shook his head, "It all seems too familiar, when I was working with Kel'Thazud he told me about the powers of the sunwell and..." John thought back.

"And what?" Lucien asked.

"It's just… Kel Thazud told me of a dreadlord named Mel Ganies."

Lucien looked at John questionably, "You think this is the work of the Burning Legion?"

John shook his head and put down the beaker, "No, we wiped those things out years ago, the only thing left are a few Burning Blade warlock tribes, and since I heard Thrall had taken over the Horde there have been a lot less. Have there been any reports of orc warlock clans near Silvermoon?"

Lucien shook his head.

"I haven't heard anything near Stratholme either." John said

"Oh, so that's where you live?" Lucien asked.

John shook his head, "No, that's where I grew up, I moved back and forth from there and South Shore Beach studying the way of arcane magic until I moved up to the Arcane University."

"So why aren't you working with the Kirin Tor mages?" Lucien asked.

John shrugged, "Well me and my parents have always been religious people and the Silver Hands Mansion is so close to my family and the woman I love."

Lucien smiled, "Oh, well now it all makes since, what she like, blonde or brunette, is she a mage too, tall, short, have you guys been intimate."

John blushed "Wow that's a lot of questions, why the sudden interest in my love life?"

Lucien thought back with a cocky smile, "Well we high elves pride ourselves on being somewhat vain and very romantic. But maybe we could learn a few things from you humans. So, tell me John, what's she like?" 

"Well she's a redhead, keeps it long like down to her butt."

"Ah, very nice." Lucien nodded and smiled.

"A few inches shorter them me, and no she's not a mage. At times I wish she was, so we could have gotten married earlier. And to the last question, yes, before I left for the Arcane University. She has three older brothers so she's a bit on the tough side."

Lucien looked at me questionably, "Does she have a name?"

John remembered himself, "Oh I'm sorry, Vorioia Pride and yes she can't wait to get married." I thought to myself for a second, "To get back on the subject, what do you think is the cause of this disease?"

Lucien thought back, "Trolls?"

We looked at each other for a few seconds and broke into laughter. "No, but seriously, have you heard from Kel'Thazud, you guys did decide to make him a counselor in his younger years as he told me."

Lucien shrugged, "I heard Kel Thazud the Demon Slayer was expelled from the Kirin Tor a year ago, nobody's heard from him since."

John swallowed hard from a cause of concern, turned his back on his work bench, and cross his arms, "Why, how?" John asked.

Lucien shrugged, "I don't know."

John thought back and looked up, "Well demons can corrupt people's minds," John stated, "empower their bodies, and can enhance their powers with the arcane, but there's always a price of blood to go with it. Why dead bodies, I don't know, but maybe the Legion is taking a more subtle approach."

Lucien rolled his eyes, "But zombie diseases, most demons once summoned are all about, 'LOOK UPON MY GREAT POWER AND TREMBLE!' Even lesser demons I've seen summoned by warlocks have enough pride to make us High Elves look like nuns." Lucien said with a laugh, "I'm sure this is all the work of some plague carried by rats."  
John looked at him and smiled "Yeah, well lucky for us I found an antidote, they seem few in numbers, and there somewhat mindless."  
"With the help of the sunwell that is..."  
A familiar voice said from outside. The prince of Silvermoon stepped into our medical room, Kael'Thas Sunstrider was wearing his red and yellow arcane elven robes. Everyone knew that he only wore those for battle, something must of been going on. "Prince Kael'Thas you honor us with your presence"

Lucien said with a bow. John just looked at him, "Why was he here, of all places, and dressed like that?" He thought. "What brings you here your highness?" John asked out loud.

"I'm sorry John, but you're the last. Your friends that came with you are dead." Kael'Thas said towering over John.

John looked up at him, "If there dead then the antidote is..."

Kael'Thas shook his finger in John's face, "No, no, no, it's not that, it works fine. I and my men cut them down."

John felt his heart go up to his throat, "So your here to kill me?"

Kael'Thas stepped back and laughed, "Maybe, I'm sorry for seeming so cold at first, I've seen some death today, but I must know how much of this antidote did you take?"

John thought back, "A little bit, I gave them more because their injuries were more severe."

Kael'Thas looked away, "Well your members of the Silver Hand attacked my men looking for more of the stuff."

"Why would they do that?" John asked. But it seemed true, the group asked them to hold them prisoner if they did change into the undead. John hadn't seen his team members since they were put in their care. Even Lucien was ordered to look over John and make sure he didn't change into a monster.

"The antidote is extremely addicting," Kel'thus said, "but you really don't know anything about high elves, do you?!"

"I know that the sunwell makes your powers stronger and can cure almost any disease or sickness. But as for us humans, gnomes, dwarves, and even night elves, there not affected by it at all. The sunwell is a concentrated area of..."

"I didn't ask you about the sunwell itself, I said High Elves, you seem to know that all too well if you ask me!" Kael'Thas interrupted.

"I'm sorry, but this is my first time here." John said.

Kael'Thas sighed and shook his head, "For better or for worst you seem to have found a way for anyone to use the place of our birthright! With the price of high elf blood!"  
"Your highness I was only trying..."

John tried to explain until he was interrupted again, "John, I need you to leave our city, right now."

John wanted to say something, but this conversation seemed to be only going one way. Kael'Thas poured the large beaker into three smaller ones and put them on the table. "Take three vials with you, one for Lordaeron, one for the Silver Hand, and one for the city of Stratholme. If people see that this Sunwell Elixir does work you may send them here. Don't say that the high elves are without mercy."

"Thank you, your highness." John said with a bow.

Kael'Thas started to walk out but turned his head, looked John in the face with angry eyes, and shook his head, "No, don't thank me, the cost for this cure will not be cheap, and more undead seem to be rising. If you dare tell anyone about the need for high elf blood, I will personally find you and burn your entire kingdom to the ground!" Kael'Thas looked away from me and started out the door. "My men will have a dragonflight to take you back to Lordaeron."

John took the three bottles and put them in his bag. Lucien gestured him to leave the room and escorted John outside the city gates, but while walking through the city John couldn't help but wonder what had really happen to his friends. Being a mage, he was able to keep the vials cold. "I'm sorry about this John, but a prince must look out for the greater good of his people. If people found the truth about the elixir we high elves could be hunted for this very reason."

John smiled, "I know, your secrets safe, but only because we have become friends these past few weeks."

John got on one of the dragonflight's and took off to Lorderon. The flight there would take three hours, he had only taken a few drinks of the Sunwell Elixir, and it was sweet and fizzy. Not only was it pleasing to the tongue and gave you energy once it went down, but his powers with arcane magic had grown a lot. The bottles felt cold in the humid weather, "Three hours with these in my bag with nothing to eat or drink but conjured bread and water." John thought.

But what he felt might feel ten times worst if he drank a whole bottle. "One for my kingdom, one for the Silver Hand, and one for my city." John thought.

(The writing changes to first person.)

Two hours into this flight and I've tried to steer this thing, I was able to see smoke coming from my city. I guess I could thank Kael'Thas again for giving me an over trained dragon flight that wouldn't go anywhere but where it was told regardless of how much you try to pull or yank on its leads, but I hope everything was alright. I mean Kael'Thas said there was more undead rising but it would take a lot more than two weeks for any army of the undead to take out and infect the people of Stratholme. Maybe they were burning the undead bodies. Yes, that's what it must have been, the people of Stratholme are smart. If they couldn't find a cure for this disease that would be the only option. Vorioia, my love, my sweet, beautiful Vorioia, I hope your safe. I hope for the best, but losing you would be the worst, not that you couldn't take care of yourself. I took out the vials and watched the arcane crystals spin from the bumps in the flight. I thought to myself, "My power has gone up quite a bit. If I had drank a whole bottle could I have given Kael'Thas and his lackeys a run for their money?"

I smiled and thought to myself about how good the high elves had it. I had studied and trained my ass off at South Shore Beach. The high elves that were at the Arcane University seemed to always keep to their own people, acting like they didn't speak Common, but a lot of them seemed downright sickly. Whenever I had to do an assignment with one of these elves they would always use that same excuse, "If we were anywhere near the sunwell this assignment would be a piece of cake."

I mean why couldn't they just use magic in a normal way. It really wasn't that hard, but now I had the power of the sunwell in my bare hands, everything they talked and bragged about... but what was I thinking, I put the vail into my bag and incased it in ice, but I still really wished I had something else to think about, I wished this thing could move faster.

When I got to Lordaeron the dragonflight I was riding screamed and shook me off to the point I fell about six feet from the ground on my back. Then took off into the night a lot faster than when I was riding it. I dusted myself off, "Thanks again Kael'Thas."  
I said sarcastically out loud.

When I walked to the courtyard a group of paladins were waiting outside the royal chambers. It was Uther? Uther the Lightbringer, he was storming into the royal chambers with a large group of paladin knights. I would normally talk to someone in my chain of command at the Silver Hand but if I could tell the king personally that I had found the cure there would be no one to take my credit. I might be even able to tell him how I made it, I'm sure Kael'Thas, and his army of high elves could burn down the Silver Hands Mansion, but there's no way they could even get close to the forces of Lordaeron. I followed Uther in the chambers, "Your son has gone mad with bloodlust, even now he leads Lordaeron forces to their very deaths!" Uther yelled.

"Uther, lower your voice in the main hall." Ordered the king.

"Your highness, Arthas is being led into a trap, left by the dreadlord Mel'Ganis." He explained.

"Mel'Ganis?" I remembered that name and it made a chill go down my spine, I didn't know what was going on.

"What reason do you believe that my son would not do what's best for his people." Asked the king.

"Your son had the entire city of Stratholme purged; he cares little for his people, only for his own pride and vengeance." Uther answered.

I walked through the large crowd of paladins and pulled Uther by the shoulder, "What do you mean, purged?"

"You and I both know about the undead threat, if there was no other way to deal with these undead then that action would have to be taken." Said the king.

"But there is another way!" I finally stepped in.

"Uther who is this man?" Asked the king.

"There was hardly any undead two weeks ago, are you telling me a whole army of undead managed to kill and infect an entire city?" I demand toward Uther the Lightbringer.

"Sire, I've never seen him before. His attire suggests Quel'Thalas, he's wearing a Silver Hand necklace, what is your name." Uther asked.

"My name is John Ace and what would seem to be the last member of the city of Stratholme." I spoke in front of the King, "I am a soldier of the Silver Hand and I found a cure for the undead disease in Silvermoon, in the city of Quel'Thalas." I said with a bow.

"I knew it!" Yelled Uther

"Do you have any proof of this?" asked the king.

"Yes, your highness I cured myself and two members of my squad. Uther are any of your men sick?" I asked him.

Uther nodded and looked outside the royal chambers, "David?! Bring David Paule in here."

Two paladins left and brought one with a full-face plate of armor. "David take off your helmet." Uther ordered.

"Commander, I'm fine, there's no reason I need to." David said, his voice distorted by the echoes of his helmet.

"Do it, take it off." Uther ordered, David sighed and slowly took off his helmet, he was sweating profusely, his face was white and pale, his eyes were not just blood shot but purple veins in his neck to his face were showing signs of the change. Everyone in the royal chamber gasped. My guess is that he had been fighting this sickness with shear willpower.

"I saw you throwing up last night." Uther stated.

David's eyes were wrapped in tears, "Commander, please, I have a family. But I don't want to get anyone else sick." David said trying to keep his composure.

Uther patted him on the shoulder, "Don't be afraid. This man says he found a cure for your sickness."

David eye's glittered with some hope, but I was thinking that this man was too far gone.

The members of my squad didn't have it this bad until a week of carrying the sickness. "John, do you have it on you." Uther asked, and I nodded.

"Yes, here you go. How long has he been like this?" I asked as I opened the frost incased bag, the bottles were ice cold and steaming from the sudden change of temperature, but the antidote was still in liquid form. I noticed Uther looking at my bag with suspicion, but I handed it to Uther and Uther handed it to David. "Now make sure you don't..."

But it was too late, David had turned the bottle completely up finishing the whole thing.

"Wait David, there's only three vials." I ran toward David and tried to take the bottle out of his hands. "Uther" I said as I continued to try to take the bottle from him, to the point the bottle broke into a thousand pieces on the floor. I looked at the mess we had made on the ground, "Great, Uther, I hope there weren't any other paladins in your army that were sick."

Uther shook his head, "Two of my men were changed into the Scourge and were cut down. I thought David was next. David how do you feel?"

David looked at Uther with wide eyes and smiled. "I feel great, that was the best drink I ever tasted. What was in that?" David looked at his own open hands and made fist. "I feel stronger."

"Scourge, what is that?" I asked Uther as he padded David on the shoulder.

"It's what our undead enemies are calling themselves, and it seems a group of men calling themselves The Cult of the Damned is spreading this disease. Hasn't your commander briefed you about this?" Uther looked over at David's face, "Your color's starting to come back too. Sire it works."

It was indeed working almost too fast, he started to look like more of his human self, but I didn't know what was about to happen next. David smiled from ear to ear and put his head down, "No commander, it didn't."

I stepped backward toward Uthers group of paladins away from David, "Guards, he's going to attack our king! Uther get a hold of your man!" I yelled.

Uther stepped in between me and David and looked in his eyes, "Stand down! I give the orders around here." Uther ordered, he pointed at me trying to hide behind the paladins, and held David by two hands by both of his shoulders, "David what's wrong? John was there alcohol or herbs in that tonic?"

"I think I'm still sick, I can still hear the voices of the Scourge." David said as he looked at Uther holding on to both of his arms.

The King stood up, "Guards, seize him!"

"You have to tie him down Uther, get a hold of him, he's lying, he's become addicted" I yelled.

Uther took a hold of David, "Your Highness, I'm sure there's a perfectly good explanation for this," The other guard stopped, "David, your fine. Get a hold of yourself, this isn't you."

He shook him. David still smiling from ear to ear looking off into the distance. "I give the orders around here paladin!" The King ordered.

Uther looked behind him at the king and while he was distracted David pushed Uther into a nearby wall and ran toward me. Several guards came to restrain David and he pushed them away like cut grass in an open field. Now I knew why Kael'Thas Sunstrider was so mad when he came into my lab, he was dealing with two of these sunwell powered men. The other paladins didn't try to protect me, and they moved from his gaze like scared sheep, it was just me and smiling David here. He pulled the two-handed blade from his back "Don't come any closer!" I screamed.

"He still has two more, give them to me!" David demanded.

"I'm not going to—" but David reared his sword back, I took a deep breath and I incased myself in ice, there was no hiding it now, which I knew would only work for as long as I could hold my breath.

Even incased in ice I heard everyone gasp and whisper, "He's a mage?"

David's blade swing was so hard it dug about an inch away from my neck. But the rest of the ice incased around the blade making it impossible for him to take it out. David yanked and pulled but as long as I could hold this spell his sword wasn't going anywhere. David attempted to lift the whole block of ice, but it only went up a few inches. This gave Uther enough time to get back on his feet and he grabbed him by his suit of armor and took him to the ground, "No Uther, you know I wouldn't lie to you, please, I have a family! You wouldn't want their blood on your hands!"

"Guards take him away!" ordered the King.

"The David I know would never act like a madman or put himself over his own family." Uther said as he restrained him putting both of David's arms behind his back. "I will say this, you caught me by surprise. Guards take him!" Eight of the kings' men took him by each of his limbs two for each limb and dragged him screaming to the dungeon. I gasped for breath as I broke myself out of my icy chamber, David's sword fell to the ground, and I felt the cold chill of the wind blowing through my wet elven robes, "You're a mage, what the hell are you doing in the Silver Hand?" Uther said as he walked toward me.

The cat was out of the bag now, I thought faking it would be easy, but my heart was broken at the thought of being sent to the Kirin Tor. Uther grabbed me by my shirt, "Speak mage, what was the meaning of that?! I know that's an extremely advanced spell, don't tell me you just shitted out arcane magic on impulse."

"You didn't give me time to explain." My robes were still soaked, and teeth still chattering from the Ice Block spell I cast on myself.

"Put him down Uther!" Ordered the king.

"Yes sire." He did as he was ordered.

"Uther you know well enough that we are at war with an enemy that is using the most cowardly means to obtain their goals, you storm into my chambers and accuse my son of high treason without any evidence. To make matters worse you bring one of the infected in here into my kingdom?! If you knew he was sick before why would you bring him here, why would you not send him to a healer, are you really that thickheaded or do you just assume my age has made me gone senile?! If it weren't for my son's high respect in you I would have trialed you for war crimes and you would be executed before the sun went down! " the King looked at me, "And you, John Ace, how do I know your tonic isn't some over drugged concoction you and the high elves mixed up, or that you even cured that man of his sickness?!"

"Sire?" I asked.

"I should have you beheaded as well, and if by chance you have cured that man of his sickness!" The king breathed in trying to control his temper, "If it does cure him I will let you go free, if he dies you will be given a last meal and then beheaded, and by the Light if he does become one of the Scourge I will make sure you will be tortured for as long as possible until you are dead!"

I kept my head down, "Yes sire, I understand."

The king looked at me questionably, "You understand? You are going to die, do you understand that, John Ace. I've seen greater men break down and cry like children when I announced their execution." He said, but I looked him in the eyes.

"I saw the smoke coming from Stratholme on the way here and if what Uther said is true my family and my friends." I held on to my chest, "My wife to be. I would welcome any death you would see fit so I my join them in the Light."

The king was somewhat surprised, and then looked down in sympathy. Uther stood up, "Your highness, if I may be so bold. There are indeed a few mages in the Silver Hand and judging by his skill I wouldn't want to lose a mage of his caliber."

The king stepped forward, "So your taking full responsibility for his actions?" he asked.

I stood up, "Uther no. Sire, Prince Kael'Thas Sunstrider has all of the Sunwell Elixir I made. I was only able to make these vials with the high elves sunwell, he just wanted me to come here and show that it did indeed work."

The King sat back in his throne, "I see, you knew nothing of the effects. What was in the Elixir?"

My mind went blank, I remembered Kael'Thas's threats, but I also remembered how Lucien had been so nice to me and even given his own blood to cure us. I could just see the High Elves being hunted like dogs, so people could feed their addictions, "Powders made from powerful herbs and tree bark, and a small amount of dragon flight blood dipped into the sunwell. He told me it was addicting, and he cut down two of my friends who were with me. But I never saw the bodies. If I knew it would do this to a person I would have told you. But to be honest I didn't think the antidote would work because David seemed too far gone to be cured."

The King looked down and nodded, "Just what I thought."

"Then if the cure does work." Uther said out loud. "If we marched to Stratholme we could lead the survivors to Silvermoon and cure them."

The King looked at Uther questionably and shook his head. "No Uther, I've heard rumors that Highlord Alexandros Mograine has rejoined the Silver Hand and is looking into a way to stop these undead, but I will send an emissary to call Arthas and his men back."

Uther gasped, "Sire do you really think that Arthus will listen to one man? Let me go and tell him, if my orders come from you he won't be able to refuse."

The king nodded, "There isn't a doubt in my mind that you would, Uther. But if Arthus is anything but a king he will return regardless."

Uther looked at him questionably, "Anything but a king? You mean you would sacrifice your own son?"

The king pointed at Uther, "I would sacrifice a lot more if it meant saving these lands and its people from these mindless undead. My son and his army are doing everything they can to stop these undead forces at their source. If you really feel the need to look for survivors, return to the Chapel of Light and see if their priest could find some other way. But as for this elven cure, you can just forget it. Othmar Garithos will be taking over your paladins." The King explained, "OTHMAR!" He yelled, "Bring Othmar here."

A few moments later a voice off into the distance started running into the chamber, a large man with a strong chin and a big moustache with fresh cuts and bruises walked into the chamber. "Yes, your Highness, you summoned me?"

The King looked at him questionably, "Warden, what happened to you?"

The Warden put his hand in the back of his neck, "The last prisoner you set me needed a little more work to clad in irons, but nothing I couldn't handle."

The king smiled, "Warden Othmar Garithos I would like to promote you to a Grand Marshal to take over Uther's paladins. They ran away from that last prisoner I sent you like scared children, but I think you can whip them into shape. Please know that if the king of Stormwind wants a "New Alliance" I'm eventually going to need a strong General to lead it. But there is one condition if you agree."

Othmar Garithos kneeled, "I would lead our people of Lordaeron with honor and discipline, if my king wishes it," Othmar lifted his head. "But what's the condition?"

The king stood up, "I want you to keep a close eye on prince Kael 'thus Sunstrider, that prisoner I set you was over drugged because of something he and this mage made, but don't worry about him. If Kael'Thas so much as lifts a sword toward Lordaeron I want to know about it."

"I knew it! I knew the High Elves couldn't be trusted! Don't worry my king; I will make sure these lesser races do not corrupt our sacred Alliance." Othmar screamed as his punched the ground.

The king pulled a sword from the side of his throne, walked toward Othmar, touched both of Othmar shoulders with his sword, "Then arise, Grand Marshal Othmar Garithos. Your men are outside."

The Grand Marshal stormed outside and started screaming orders at his new soldiers. The sound of clan iron boots could be heard stomping on ground and shouting slowly begin to fade as soldiers begin to march away.

Uther lowered his head, "Very well." he said.

The king took a deep breath, sighed, and looked at me, "What a day, maybe I am getting to old for this. John, could I have some water please. My throat is dry."

I got to work quickly, "Of course, sire." I conjured the king the best water I could give. I tried to freeze it a little bit to make it cold so that maybe that would do the trick. I handed it to one of the guards and he handed it to the king. He was about to drink it. I waited for his reaction, if I wasn't going to be beheaded for what had just happened I was most likely going to be beheaded for this.

He drank all of it, "This is actually really good. May I have another?" He gestured with the ice cup and threw it on the ground, he liked it?

Maybe he was just trying to be nice, "Thank you, your highness." I said making another one.  
He stood up from his throne holding the second ice glass cup. "Uther, you and my men are to take John back to the mansion he is stationed at, and then my men will lead you to the Chapel of Light."

Uther looked at him questionably, "Sire?"

The king started down the stairs and looked up at Uther, "When you meet John Ace's commander, you will tell him, by the order of the king let him join whatever mages are stationed there, and John."

I nodded, "Yes you're Highness?"

The king touched my shoulder and looked me in the eyes, "I'm sorry for your lost, I know what it's like to lose someone that close. My kingdom has failed you, but your king will not. I WANT THESE CHAMBERS CLEANED THROUGHLY; I WILL NOT HAVE DISEASE SPREADING THROUGH MY HALLS!" The king started out the door with two of his guards, A dozen chamber maids with rags over their faces began scrubbing away at the chamber floors.

Uther keeping his head down, "Very well." He said.

Well that could have gone better, the King seemed more like a high ranking general then a King of ceremony and tradition. I really wondered what he must have been like in his prime; no wonder the orc's that invaded never stood a chance. I was not really use to being around all this royalty, in one night I had met the King of Lorderon and the Prince of Silvermoon, but what had become of my city? "John do you have a horse?" Uther asked.

I shook my head, "No, I flew here." I answered.

Uther started walking down the road, "Good, it will give us time to talk."

"My people are waiting for me to help them; wouldn't it be better if we rode horses." I said.

Uther shook his head, "John, do you know why we're being escorted?"

I did think it was strange, also the fact that knights had taken away his hammer. I followed him with the rest of the king's men close behind, "Yes, the king thinks you'll go through with your plan. But you or the king never answered my question."

"And what was that?" Uther asked.

"How could, in two weeks, could in entire city be taken over by undead and if Mel'Ganis is behind this whole thing, there would have to of been reports of warlocks tribes, how could a few stupid orc warlock tribes manage to summon a dreadlord as powerful as him. They would need to be skilled for one and would also need large amounts of blood and shards. I know the patterns of rebel warlocks' clans. Kidnappings, missing persons, entire cities destroyed to make room for their portals. The Silver Hand would put these clues together and I'm sure the people of Stratholme would too. The problem would have been dealt with before it even started." I explained.

"You're right," Uther said not looking at me in the face, "And then everyone in Lordaeron would normally try to stop this as well. But these aren't normal circumstances, but what if people gave themselves to these demons willingly?" He explained.

"Who in the right mind would do that?" I asked. Uther looked over his shoulder at me, "Do you know of a warlock named Kel'Thuzad?"

I gasped, "I know a mage named Kel'Thuzad, as in Kel'Thuzad the Demon Slayer, and he taught me many things before I entered the Arcane University near South Shore Beach when I was a teenager. I heard yesterday he was expelled from the Kirin Tor a year ago, I imagine he must of went back to South Shore Beach to teach again. It must be someone else."

But I knew that it wasn't, not a lot of people have the word "Demon Slayer" in front of their name. It meant that you were a noble, and the high elves just don't hand out those titles out for free. He fought the Burning Legion when the portal opened up and yes he did know a lot about demons, but he always made it seem like it was better to know your enemies better than your friends. But no, not Kel'Thuzad, even though he never cradled me like a mother he was always pushing me to be better than any of those bastards at the university. He said that that part of my life would be easy and I should just have fun. And it was. I bested so many other mages because of him. I had planned on seeing him once I saved up enough money but now what had become of him? "John, are you listening?!" Uther demanded, and I woke up from my daydream.

"What?!" I said.

"He poisoned the grain, that's how so many of your people became undead in these two weeks. That's why Arthus had the city of Stratholme purged. I had tried to reason with him, but he wouldn't hear it. He expelled my paladins from service and as you just saw, his father took my paladins away from me."

I looked at him questionably, "You're Uther the Lightbringer, General of the Soldiers of Lordaeron, true?"

Uther stopped and looked at me, "Yes."

"And Prince Arthas was a paladin as well, under your tutorage, true?" I continued.

"Yes, of course." Uther answered. All the soldiers stopped and were looking at us, but none of them spoke.

"Did he have orders from our king to purge the city? Were his orders to expel you and your paladins from service coming from our king? I mean, wouldn't quarantine have been a more suitable action until a cure was found?" I lifted up my bag.

"He is the prince of Lordaeron, I couldn't just..." Uther tried to explain, but I interrupted

"Oh, I see, he's the prince, so he must have threatened you. A prince's army must have been larger than all the men you brought back to Lordaeron, not only the men you said that turned into Scourge." I stated.

"Well no, the force I had was stronger than his. He wanted me to help him purge the city, but me and Lady Jaina Proudmore..."

I laughed, I knew who Jaina Proudmore was, a spoiled brat who was raised in the university and taught only by the most successful mages from the time she could walk. I was hardly ever bested at the university and when I was, it was because I was too drunk or hung-over to duel that well on that day, but Jaina had bested me even on times I was cold sober. I hated the fact that I was being bested by a woman, but most of the time I would tell myself that I wasn't giving it my all because she was beautiful. But hearing it come from someone who was actually there when it happen, someone who could of stopped it. It was just funny to me and I couldn't stop laughing. "You had Jaina Proudmore, a larger force... and you couldn't stop the spoiled brat Prince Arthas from slaughtering every person because they might, might have been infected by poison grain. I thought when the king said you were stupid he was just angry, but do you actually have plate armor inside your skull as well? How can someone so stupid work his way up to a General?! No wonder he took your paladins away, you should be reading fairy-tale stories to children, not leading armies to their deaths."

I took a deep breath and the laughing was over. This stupid overgrown man had the nerve to touch me on my shoulder. "Your right, John." He said.

I pushed away his hand, but he was so massive I couldn't move it, I blew fire from my mouth and blinded him with a bit of fire and ice. "DON'T TOUCH ME!" I yelled, he backed away, and covered his face.

None of the guards did anything, when Uther regained his composure he looked around, "He assaulted your General, arrest him." He pointed.

One of the men in full plate armor stepped forward and the man in front stopped him, looked at him, and shook his head. A stone from one of the guards nailed Uther in the face. "Don't!" The guard in front ordered, his voice distorted by his helmet.

"What's going on, I said arrest him." Uther ordered touching the area where the stone hit.

"All of us had friends in Stratholme," the guard spoke. "Jaina, we can understand, everyone knows those two were lovers. But you paladin, you could have stopped him, I would never follow your orders Uther, and I think all of my men would agree." He gestured to his men with his thumb.

Uther had no weapon, so he just put up his fist. "So, I take it you all plan on stoning me to death. I will have you all stripped of rank and whipped until you're scarred and bloody and begging for death!"

The lead guard laughed, "Do you even know any of our names Uther, or even what we look like under these helmets? We are not going to stone you Uther, we have our orders from the king, but I think that little mage over there deserves whatever justice he can get from your overgrown hide."

"You just walked away, old man?" I finally said with rage in my voice walking toward him. "Do you know how long it took for us after getting attacked by undead forces and some of us mortally wounded to be where we were looking like David back there... A WEEK! YOU'RE TELLING ME THAT YOU COULDN'T WAIT ONE WEEK BEFORE YOU LET THE PRINCE OF LORDAERON KILL EVERYONE IN STRATHOLME!" Uther could feel my blood turn cold, he stepped backward away and tripped and held out his hand in defense; Kel'Thazud had told me I could use my negative emotions to empower my frost spells, "Use the pain of loss and your frost power should increase three-fold." He would say.

He would say "Listen John, I'm so sorry, if I could go back," Uther pleaded.

"SORRY DOESN'T BRING MY WIFE, MY FAMILY, AND HER THREE OLDER BROTHERS BACK!"

"Mage, if you don't stop I'll..."

I caught his arm and incased it in ice. "You'll do what, paladin? You thought Jaina Proudmore was a good mage. Kel'Thuzad taught me everything there is to know about the arcane arts. I could freeze the very blood in your veins."

Uther screamed out in pain holding his frozen arm, "Guards, please help me! John, please, this is the hand I hold a sword with, please don't break it."

I let go and I incased both of his legs in ice. Then charged a Pyroblast hoping to take that head clear off.

"John!" One of the guards said. "Don't kill him."

I looked at him questionably, "Why not?" I asked.

"Just look at him John, he's broken." The guard said.

Uther looked like a scared rabbit cornered by a barking dog. Uther the Lightbringer, General of Lordaeron's army seemed too pathetic to kill. I looked away from Uther and looked toward the guards, "Where's Arthus?" I asked.

"Northrend, he's going after the dreadlord Mel'Ganis. You can take a boat there if you have the funds, but you might want to bring a coat." The guard said. 

I broke the spell, Uther was free, but Uther just laid there crying, and apologizing like a five-year-old girl.

"I know the way to the mansion, I won't need an escort." I said.

The lead guard nodded, "We know, don't worry about Uther, we'll make sure he doesn't try to do anything stupid, he deserves to live with this guilt. We'll call a carriage to bring him to Light's Hope if we must. For what it's worth, I'm sorry for your loss."

I took a deep breath, "I think I got a little bit of justice today, thanks to you." I walked away.

The other guards just circled and stared at him, Uther trying to hide his face from their eyes.

It was almost morning, so I knew that the soldiers of the Silver Hand army would be up for physical training. "Sargent Nelson?"

I yelled out at what was left of my platoon. "Ace, you're alive?"

Sargent Nelson stopped from his exercise and ran toward me and gave me a hug. "It's good to see you again." He said, "So where on Azeroth have you been? Oh my gosh, your soaked and wet, and your hands are freezing."

I faked laughed, "It kind of happens every now and then when you're a mage you know." I was finally out with it. I didn't have to hide anymore; I wasn't going to be sent to the Kirin Tor. I was staying where the action was, and I was going to fight.

"A mage, I guess so, so is coming back from the dead happen when you're a mage as well? Because if it is I should start studying magic." Nelson said with a laugh. Nelson gestured toward one of my comrades, "Go get everyone, tell them Private Ace is back from the dead, and not as one of the Scourge."

I whispered in Nelson's ear, "I've got good news; you need to tell Fairbanks or the Commander that I found the cure to this disease."

Sargent Nelson nodded, "Sure I'll get your report as soon as possible, but how about we get you a hot meal and get you cleaned up a bit. I'm sure you're tired of just eating conjured bread."

In fact, I was, and I wouldn't want to make the same mistake I had made with the king by rushing in.

When I came to the barracks I took off the elven robes and put on my Silver Hand mail armor. Not that I didn't like the green and yellow ones, but they were wet and smelled like wet dog. I thought about what I was going to say to Fairbanks or to the commander, and if I couldn't find Vorioia in Stratholme, how I was going to get to Northrend and get my revenge on Arthas. I had nearly killed Uther the Lightbringer, that royal brat Arthas should be a piece of cake, he wouldn't get the mercy I showed Uther, he was directly responsible, even if he cried ten times worst then Uther I would still kill him, but I should still be careful, my over-confidence could be the death of me.

"So what happen to the rest of your squad?" I heard Sargent Nelsons voice from behind me as he opened the door.

"Sargent Nelson." I stood at attention.

"At ease, report Ace." I cleared my throat.

"We were attacked by undead forces while patrolling from the mansion to Stratholme. Our medic, Friar James was the first to get killed but the rest of us managed to dispatch the undead with some injuries."

Sargent nodded, wrote down what I said and looked me in the eyes. "So why didn't you guys report back?"

I thought back, "We had planned to, but by the time we bound our wounds if was night fall, we were tired, hungry, and we knew it would take longer carrying back Friar James's body."

Nelson nodded and looked away from me, "I guess that makes since." He continued to write. "Well, what happen in the morning? Corporal Ryan was in charge, he should of lead you guys back."

I recalled the horrible image in my head, "In the middle of the night we heard him screaming, Friar James turned into one of those things, and Corporal Ryan's dogs were trying to eat him alive."

Sargent Nelson swallowed hard, "Oh man, that's awful, so what did you guys do?"

I took a deep breath, "At first we didn't know what we were going to do, once we killed Friar James and the dogs we reopened the bandages we had closed, and they weren't healing, they were getting more infected. Since I had hardly any injuries they asked me to use Corporal Ryan's gun on them and asked me to burn their corpses, so they didn't become one of those things."

Nelson looked at me questionably, "Well did you do it?"

I shook my head, "No."

Nelson gave me a blank look, "Why, not?"

The memory made a tear fall from my eyes, "I couldn't," my voice was distorted by my incoming tears.

"Hey, it's okay. I know a lot as happen these past few weeks and you've seen more awful things then most of our vets. Come on sit down."

I sat down on my roommates' bed on the bottom bunk in our tiny room. Nelson sat on the floor across from me, "Whenever you're ready, I need to hear what happen after that."

I regained my composure, "My old teacher, Kel'Thuzad, you see, he knew a lot about the Burning Legion."

Nelson nodded, "I know of him, he was a huge help when The Legion invaded, but he was kicked out of the Kirin Tor a while back. He must have been a good teacher if you made it through all this."

I nodded, "He was, in more ways than just magic, he said that the darker dreadlords could reanimate corpses and use them in their ranks. He told me the signs of the change and Parson's and Parkingson's weren't showing any signs. He told me about the sunwell that the high elves used it to enhance their power and cure their illnesses."

Nelson nodded, took a deep breath, "Okay, but doesn't the sunwell only work on high elves?"

I looked away from him, "We traveled for a few days to Silvermoon and we asked the high elves to hold us in case we changed into undead. A week later I found a cure for our illness using the sunwells magic."

Nelson's eyes went wide, "Oh, so how did you do that?"

I shook my head, "I already told the King of Lordaeron,"

Nelson rolled his eyes, dropped the pen and paper on the floor, "Wow, I've always told you not to go over my chain of command, but this is a whole new low. How are you not dead right now? You're also a mage, do you want to end up like your older sister?"

I pulled the vial out of my bag. "Let me just tell you, don't write it down. This tonic will not only cure any human of any illness, but will enhance their strength, and power, but it's extremely addicting, and if anyone ever found out how it was made, the high elves would be hunted not only to cure their illnesses, but the simple need for more."

Nelson rolled his eyes, looked up at me, "So why aren't you addicted?"

I sighed, "I didn't take as much but my power has grown, the feeling it gave my body, the overall taste, it's taken a lot of willpower not to drink this myself, but I didn't take as much as Parkingson's or Parsons, but it was the reason why they didn't make it back."

Nelson half smiled, "Yeah, you never told me what happen to them."

I continued on, "I didn't see what happened to them myself personally but, Kael'Thas was in his royal battle mage-robes when he came to see me. I imagine they must have killed some of the elves looking for more of the stuff."

He looked away from me in disappointment, "So you know that they died?"

I looked away from him as well, "No, but I saw the effects personally when I came to the Castle of Lordaeron and I was almost killed by one of Uther's knights, it cured him, but I don't think he'll ever be the same. Then the King of Lordaeron almost had me beheaded because of what happen."

Sargent Nelson got up and took a deep breath, "Now that sounds like our king. Well I guess that's what brings you here... but, why did you try to kill Uther?"

I swallowed hard, "Is that what he told you?"

Nelson nodded, "The knights that escorted him said it was self-defense on your part, but he said you attacked him, but if it wasn't for the knights he would have nearly died from hypothermia, he'll be out of commission for a few days, but Commander Mograine is impressed with your power, but if I write about your tonic he might think a little bit less."

"Did Uther happen to say anything about what he was supposed to do with me, the orders he was given from the king?! This tonic had nothing to do with what I did, Kel'Thuzad..."

I had yelled at him, but he interrupted, "Uther the Lightbringer has been bed ridden since he got here, he says you attacked him and has been crying and talking in his sleep saying, 'I'm sorry'. He isn't just the leader of the Paladin order. He's the Supreme Commander of the Silver Hand knights. Do you think I want to see the last man in my section beheaded, a free mage for that matter? But you should know I'm risking a lot to keep you here, and the way you keep talking about Kel'Thuzad I'm having a hard time believing what I've heard."

I looked at him questionably, "Why, what have you heard?"

Nelson took a deep breath, "I'm sorry John, Kel'Thuzad is dead, Arthas said he was the leader of the Cult of the Damned, so I wouldn't' keep talking about him like the way you have been, people will think your one of them. But now I don't know what to think, people said Arthas killed more people that seemed healthy then he did undead, and why would he take so many of the king's men to Northrend. And now you're telling me Kel'Thuzad being a good person."

I laughed at that last statement, "Well, I didn't say that. I mean he never really was a "good person", he was rude, cold, arrogant, had a sarcastic sense of humor, overall he hated people, and at best, he was a strict teacher, but he was also brilliant and never walked away from someone in trouble."

Nelson looked away from me, "So you think he did it?"

I remembered something Kel'thazud would always say to me. "John, nothing is worth dying for, if you don't look into every detail, your overconfidence will be the death of you, and everything you worked for will be for nothing." I thought.

I shook my head at him, "No, if I know Kel'Thuzad, he would never put himself in harm's way, he would try to find some way for someone else to do it. Knowing full well that the forces of Lordaeron would come after whoever was behind all the kidnapping. Kel'Thuzad... if you didn't know him, it would be a perfect alibi and killing a powerful mage like him, it would bring a lot of glory."

Nelson half smiled, "You think this was a set up?"

I nodded, "If Kel'Thazud was down on his luck he wouldn't be hard to find. I just wish I knew earlier, I would of..."

Nelson interrupted me. "Hey, don't think like that, you can't blame yourself for other people's deaths. But if it makes you feel any better, you can pay your respects. Saidan Dathrohan and Commander Molgraine will see you when you're ready, but I'll tell them you need sometime alone."

Nelson got up, patted me on the shoulder, and left the room. Kel'Thuzad was the closest thing I could call a father, a teacher, a mentor, and a friend, I thought one day I would be as powerful as he was and even quoted him before every stupid would-be mage, warlock, or priest had tried to challenge or jump me. "Your overconfidence will be the death of you."  
I would say, even Uther the Lightbringer, he was lucky I didn't kill him. But what more could Arthas take away from me? "Kel'Thuzad." I said out loud, I will mourn for you tonight, even though you never gave me a shred of love or respect I wouldn't be the man I am today if it weren't for you.

Even though it was ten in the morning when I went to sleep, I woke up the next morning a little bit under 24 hours. I awoke from nightmares several times about how Arthas being behind this whole thing, but I also had disturbing waking thoughts well into the night. Arthas leading the Cult of the Damned to over throw his father, murdering Kel'Thuzad and placing the blame on him, poisoning the grain to feed the undead armies. A prince could lead people to their very deaths and could summon a demon as powerful as Mal'Ganis. He could hire the most skilled warlocks and open a portal underground. I didn't have any proof of this and it was 5:30 am almost time for the morning workout. I put on my lose clothes and headed out the door but there was a knock on it before I could leave. I opened it and Sargent Nelson was waiting outside in red full body plate armor carrying his helmet in his hand. "Get dressed your coming with me."

He threw me a bag filled with crimson robes, cloth boots, everything a mage could need, "Sargent Nelson I'm fine wearing the armor just like everyone else."

Sargent Nelson smiled at me, "Oh really?"

He threw his heavy helmet at me hard enough for it to knock me down. "Ouch! What was that for?!" I complained.

Nelson shook his head and laughed, "John I've seen the way you walk in mail armor and I've also seen the way you cast spells in mail armor as well. And from what I heard from the king's royal chambers they said it was a stupid idea to make you wear that."

I shook my head, "But you always said I would get used to it."

Sargent Nelson took the helmet from me, "Yeah, but after that you were going to have to start wearing this."

He held up his plate helmet, "And by the Light knows how long that would take. Just try them on, Ach-mage Doan made these for you."

I nodded and started to put them on, they made chills go through my veins as I started to put on every piece of clothing. I was wearing a hood covering my whole face and I put it down, so I could speak. "You know I heard Doan was a feeble old man who couldn't even make it into the Kirin Tor, but he sure can make a good set of arcane robes."

Nelson shrugged, "Well how old are you like 25 now, here."

He tossed me a black metal staff with a green crystal on top, this was the first metal staff I've ever owned, and all the staffs I've used were made of wood. "Nice, this should last me a lot longer than the other staff's I used to use."

I followed Sargent Nelson outside the mansion. It was the coldest part of the day, right before the sun comes up, "So where we going? Shouldn't we bring horses?"

I asked Nelson, he shook his head, "You need to see what we've been fighting these past few weeks and I don't want running away to be an option, do you have any type of shield spells?"

I nodded, "Pure arcane plasma spells are my worst subject, but let me try something."

I thought about Stratholme for a few seconds and I was able to make a pure shield of ice.

Nelson looked at me in shock, "Woah, I've never seen anything like that before, did you just make that up? Your whole body is steaming." He reached over to touch me, "By the Light your freezing, aren't you cold?"

I was as surprised as he was, "No, I don't even feel anything even when you touched me, it's like numb."

He started to walk, "Well I guess that works for me, come on."

I followed behind him, "Where are we going?"

I asked. "We're going to try to find your teacher's body, most likely Arthas left him to rot, and after that you need to speak with Saidan Dathrohan and Commander Mograine." Nelson explained.

I gasped, "Highlord Alexandros Mograine is here?"

Nelson shook his head, "No, he's on his way to Ironforge as we speak, his son Renavlt is trying to step out of his shadow and was made a commander, but you should still hold him with the up-most respect."

I agreed with him, I've heard stories about Alexandros when I was a kid, Kel'Thazud told me that they were mostly true, but Kel'Thuzad told me not to give into to what everyone said about him. Besides there was plenty of time for heroes to rise in these dark times.

We walked for about an hour before we started to run into undead, and for the most part Sargent Nelson seemed like he knew how to fight these things, during our fights he would yell out, "Don't let their blood get on you." Or "Freeze them all in place."

An the more I thought about Arthas, about my home, I was able to kill these Scourge with ease. I guess being so scared when a group of undead had jumped us was why so many of us got injured. I didn't know if it was the new robes I'd been given, the tonic I had drank, or my emotions for my loss of my home city, but me and Sargent Nelson were a two-man army.

"Let's stop for a second I think were clear." Nelson said.

"Did you bring anything to eat?" I asked.

He looked at me questionably, "I brought you."

He held out his hand. Oh, not this again, well it's his funeral. I don't know if I made bad bread on purpose because people would always ask me once they found out I was a mage, but you know I like eating normal food, and just because they bring me along that doesn't mean you shouldn't pack your own food. I mean what if I died, and then what will you do, starve? But I guess it might be one of the reasons why I'm still alive, Parkingsons knew that I was a mage and he did try pretty hard to make sure I didn't get hurt. "Sure, one second."  
I didn't try very hard to make him his bread, but I handed him a loath. "Are we there yet? We've been killing these undead for most of the day."

Nelson sat down and took a bite of conjured bread, "Wow John, this is really good."

"Okay, yeah thanks a lot, I'm going to eat my jerky that I paid for with my money." I thought.

I pulled the salted meat out of my bag, "You're not going to have any of your bread?" Nelson asked.

I shook my head, I guess he was trying to make me feel better, that was nice of him really. "No, I brought some salted meat do you want some?"

Nelson looked away from me, "Nope, I'm kind of tired of that stuff."

I nodded, "I guess I feel the same way, but you never miss something until it's gone."

Nelson sighed for a second and looked over at me, "Yeah I guess so. This forest use to be so beautiful and now look at it, the trees are dying, there's no way you could take your family out here anymore. Now a day's kids are learning to use swords and magic before they even learn to have a good time. Don't you remember?"

I nodded, "Of course I remember, I got bullied a lot by the older kids, but I remember crying a lot to the point my best friend, now my soon to be wife came to my rescue. She got kind of tired of protecting me after a while and told me, 'You're going to have to stand up for yourself or my brothers and all their friends are going to keep bullying you.' One day she was nowhere to be found. I remember talking back to one of them and right when she was about to hit me, I didn't cry or crawl into a ball and I just looked her in the eye's."  
"Did you kick his ass, or… her ass?" Nelson asked.

I laughed, "Kind of, somehow I managed to set her hair on fire. My parents were so mad at me, but it was that time I knew I could use the arcane arts to protect myself. But I hated it because I had to change schools, I couldn't see my friend anymore, but as we grew up I saw her on the weekends and I went to her school parties and she came to mine."

Nelson pointed at me, "See? Parties, when we were kids. Have you heard about any parties that haven't gone on without someone duking it out with someone? Everything is about this sword play tournament this and magic show that. It gets to the point that I want to send my son to a gnome school so maybe he'll learn to think outside the box."

I nodded, "Well I like the magic shows, even the ones that aren't real. You know about my sister Janice? She was such a talented magician I couldn't believe my parents just sold her."

Nelson agreed with me, "Well I miss those too, and yeah you told me. We should get going."

We both stood up and it wasn't long before we found Kel'Thuzad's rotting body, it smelled awful, but I expected to see him as an undead. I guess it was a good thing that he didn't have to go through that. "So, what do you think?" Nelson asked. The body looked like it must have been at least four or five days dead. His bearded face looks slightly blacken from swelling from a broken neck, but the arm was bent in a way that suggested a heavy object must have hit him from the side. Flies were drawn to him on his lower body showing that they were feeding off his feces and not from the detriment from his wounds.

I opened his eye and they were rolled back behind is head. I expected his pupils to be dilated like when you kill a rabbit or buck, which meant he was most likely rendered blind or some kind of mind magic was used on him. The blood that had leaked on the ground was black suggesting maybe three or four days.

I took off the glove that he was wearing and put it on. "There's nothing."

"What do you mean there's nothing?" Nelson asked.

I looked at Nelson, "I mean his gloves, his robes, his hat, his boots, these aren't the robes he wore. I remember when I was young I put on his robes and it made my body tingle so much I couldn't move. He wasn't fit for battle if Arthas killed him."

He looked at me questionably, "What do you think. You think someone gave them to him or he was trying to get himself killed?"

I shook my head, "He died from a broken neck, but a lot of times when you're trying to fit a body into clothes you brake cartilage in the shoulder or arm. His arm is broken. So, no, he would never go out in the forest, dying or not, not without his best robes, I mean what if a bear or wolf caught him by surprise, it would be like him walking outside naked, how likely is that. These robes were most likely put on him."

Nelson looked over the body, "Well we should try to bury him, there's no reason to let him rot."

I could feel myself crying again, I couldn't believe this was happening, "Are you crying again?"

"How would you feel if your best teacher died." I yelled.

"I would mourn his loss just like you are." Nelson said as he picked him up.

"Then why did you say that?" I asked.

He looked at me and then looked side to side "What did I say?"

"John, stop crying, you're not a kid anymore." I looked around.

"Did you hear that?" Nelson shook his head looking at me questionably.

"I thank you for showing me some respect John, but don't say anything out loud, I can hear you when you think it."

"Kel'thazud," I thought, "What happen to you?"

"Arthas killed me, it was supposed to happen this way." Kel'Thazud said.

"I'll kill him, I'll kill him for everything he took away from me, I will avenge you master, and restore your honor!" I thought.

"What did he take from you John?"

"Didn't you know, he killed everyone in Stratholme, Vorioia she's, she's..."

"She isn't dead, John."

"What, how do you know?"

"She is not in the afterlife. I've been following Arthas in this form and I did not see her soul leave her body, but please understand Arthas was supposed to kill me."

"You would never let yourself die; everything you worked for would be for nothing if you let yourself get killed, why are you talking to me like that? The Kel'thazud I knew never talked to me like I was a child, who are you? GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" I screamed out loud as I fell to my knees, Nelson came to my aid.

"Believe whatever you want John Ace, but I leave you with this advice, if you want to see your beautiful Vorioia again follow Arthas when he returns from Northrend."

"FOLLOW HIM, WHERE?!" I screamed out loud.

"You'll know when the time is right, this I promise you, you will see her again, whether you think I'm the real Kel'Thazud you knew or not."

"JOHN! JOHN! Wake up!" Sargent Nelson was trying to bring me back.

"I saw him." I said.

"Who?" Nelson asked.

"Kel'Thazud, but it wasn't him, or maybe it was someone else with his voice." I explained

"You said 'follow him where' follow who where?" Nelson asked.

"Arthas when he returns." I answered.

"John, Arthas is going to have a lot to explain if, or when, he makes it back from Northrend. We might have enough to restore your teacher's honor when he gets back. I for one hope he dies over there, but we'll wait for news to come back. Come on, lets bury your masters corpse and head back."

We took off Kel'Thazud's robes and buried him six feet under at a nearby graveyard, we didn't have anything to use as a head stone, so I took my staff off my back.

"John, you might need that, you know." Nelson said.

I nodded, "I know, but he needs it more right now, I'll come back for it when we find a good headstone to set up." I said while placing the staff on the spot we buried him.

"Well aren't you worried about Scourge?" Nelson asked.

I shook my head, "No, thanks to you, I think the nightmares will stop. I see my power for what it truly is, something I need to feel in my heart of hearts, my pain of loss, and my inner rage. You understand, don't you?"

Nelson crossed his arms and looked away from me, "I guess so, fighting with you this day has really made me see how you could have taken out Uther the Lightbringer, but I remember you before, you seem to be a completely different person. You seem more powerful yes, but you also seem less animated and pale."

I sighed, "Of course I'm less animated everyone in my hometown is dead, but it was making me more powerful. If only I was this powerful then, that handful of Scourge that attacked us, we could have made it to Stratholme and I could of personally stopped Arthas from killing everyone in my city. I could have led the infected to Silvermoon and cured them, addicted or not."

I hadn't felt one ounce of pain since I cast that Ice Shield spell on myself, but there was also a complete loss of emotion. I felt what it truly was to be like ice, cold, unmoving, and unloving. There was no pain, no loss, no feeling, just the deep growing tingling feeling in my spine and fingers as arcane magic flowed through my hands like an avalanche from a mountain top. "There's something I didn't tell you, Sargent Nelson." I said.

Nelson looked over at me.

"He said Vorioia, my fiance, is still alive." I said.

Nelson gasped, "John, I don't know if you should get your hopes up, but I hope you or Kel'Thuzad is right, but what else did he say?"

I explained what this voice of Kel'Thuzad said.

"That doesn't make any since!" Nelson yelled. "You've lost it kid!"

I still felt like there was still hope, "But what if there was a chance?"

Nelson grabbed me by my robes and put his finger in my face, "You want to follow Arthas?! Listen to me John, let it go. She's gone, and even if there is a slim chance she was still alive, and another slim chance if Arthas has the guts to lead you into Stratholme. Could you sit there and watch him kill her?! Because I'll tell you right now that's what he'll do!"  
I felt my blood turn cold again, "How could you know, people said he only killed people that had turned."

Nelson let go of me, "No John he didn't, I'm sorry but you weren't there, I want to see Arthas punished for everything he made us do."

He was there, but now I finally understood, "Us?! What do you mean us?!" I asked.

Nelson continued to step back, "John, I know how powerful you are now, but we need that to fight these things, to kill the Scourge."

I took a deep breath, fell to my knees, and blew cold icy air out of my mouth that made the ground freeze. I was crying, and every tear drop was filled with arcane magic and made the puddle of ice grow dramatically. "Vorioia." I cried softly.

"John I'm so sorry, I should have told you earlier." Nelson stated.

"No, Sargent Nelson you are a dear friend to me, and I'm lucky to have a friend like you." I said but Nelson looked at me questionably.

"Thanks, I can't pretend I know what you're going through but..."

I put out my hand to ask him to help me up. He walked over to me to give me his hand, but I grabbed his wrist encasing it in ice. "Which is why losing you will be so hurtful; I will truly mourn your loss."

Nelson screamed out in pain but his whole arm was incased in ice. He shook it off to the point it broke clear off. He ran off, but I blasted him with a frostbolt slowing him down and teleported to where I was standing right in front of him. Nelson tried to run back but I put him in an ice coffin leaving all his lower body in ice. "You know Uther begged for his life, and cried like a little girl when I did this to him. Are you going to beg Nelson?"

Nelson shook his head his eye's filled with rage, "Vorioia Pride, that's her name, right?!"

I looked at him questionably, "How could you know that?"

"You have every right to kill me John, I won't beg for my life, but your lover is dead. She fought, and I have never seen a person fight like she did, but she couldn't kill Arthas in time before she was overrun by mercenaries wearing the strangest clothes I ever seen, they ran through that place like water down a pipe. Killing and looting with no fear or emotion of the foes we faced, it was like a child's game to them, but it was us soldiers who had to kill every woman and child. So just do whatever it is you're going to do." He managed to laugh.

There was another spell that Kel'Thazud made me learn before I left for the University, but he told me never to use it in front of anyone unless I was about to murder that person. "I will blackmail Arthas using what I found here and will make him lead me to Stratholme." I circled around Nelson's coffin placing ice pieces around him, "When we do find Vorioia alive, dead, or undead. His life will be the forfeit of his crimes." I placed my hand on the ground making the ground underneath him glow in blue elven writing. "And I don't need anyone to know that my intentions to kill that spoiled prince, so this is goodbye Sargent Nelson."

The Ice Ritual was complete, but it was nothing I really wanted to look at. I looked away as I heard the sounds of the ice lances go through the parts of Sargent Nelsons body and his throat fill up with blood. A few seconds later I heard him exhale his last breath, I was truly going to miss him, but this loss will empower me that much more.

We had cleared out most of the Scourge on the way to Kel'Thuzads body so there were hardly any on the way back. I told the people in the Silver Hand about the Ice Ritual and where to find Sargent Nelson's body was, but we did travel to far north and the Scourge grew stronger as we kept going. My heart grows heavy as I realized I committed my first murder, but I need Arthas to lead me to Stratholme alone, and I need to kill him before he tries to kill my Vorioia. I don't need anyone to know my intentions, but I'm starting to believe that the voice that did speak to me was in fact Kel'Thazud, but why did he let Arthas kill him? That's the only thing that didn't make since. I had done enough crying since I found out the people in my home were dead, my master was dead, and now my Sargent that looked after me was dead. I was ordered to come to dinner with the Commander Mograine and Saidan Dathrohan a paladin that I heard rivaled Uther. "Welcome the man of the hour." A younger red-headed man in full Silver Hand armor greeted me with open arms. 

"So this is the mage that almost did Uther in? I've seen you before; you didn't seem all that much to me." Saidan said.

"Commander Mograine, Saidan, greetings to you." I said.

"Come sit down, eat." Commander Mograine requested, Saidan sat on the other side of the table. "I've read your report, very impressive."

I took the second vial of Sunwell Elixir and placed it on the table. "How do I get to Northrend?"

Commander Mograine rolled his eyes, "Northrend? Why on earth would you want to go to Northrend?" Mograine asked.

"I'm sorry sir, but have we met before?" I asked.

"This is Alexandros Mograine's first son Relvant. He doesn't make appearances very often." Saidan explained.

Relvant sat down next to Saidan, "Not by choice I assure you. Please sit down."

I sat down and put meat on my plate and conjured my own bread, "There's no need to do that, our chef has already made bread."

I gave him a cold look, "I'm not eating anything with grain in it, call me crazy but, I would think you wouldn't too."

Relvant fake laughed, "I guess you have a point." Relvalt held out his hand, "May I?"

"Sure" I said as I threw him a piece of bread and got ready for his reaction.

He took a bite, "Wow this is really good, it's like a sweet roll." Okay now that three times in a row, no one likes mage bread not even me, I conjured up another piece and ate it... It was good but since when?  
"May I have a few more?" Relvant asked.  
The elixir, it must have done something to me."No." I said with a blank look on my face.  
"Uh, okay, you are a strange one." Relvant said a little confused.  
Oh thank the Light, for a second there I thought that the elixir could have made people addicted to my bread and water. Sheesh, I might get people really fat if it was. "I'm just kidding, give me a few seconds." I conjured up 20 pieces and put them on the table.  
"You are a character I will say that." Relvant said with a laugh.  
"Why would you want to go to Northrend anyways, the king requested that his men be recalled, it wouldn't help his case if we sent more." asked Saidan as we ate.  
"To find the leader of these undead and kill him, Mel Ganis." I stated.  
Relvalt laughed, "He's already rotting in the Twisting Nether."  
"What do you mean?" I asked.  
"Word came in today Arthus killed Mel Ganis. And my father is looking into a way to kill every last one of these undead that walks the earth and with your potion we can cure the people that are infected." Relvalt sighed, "It's a shame really."  
"Commander?" I asked  
"It's just, I had hoped for a battle like in the stories, a battle like when the Burning Legion invaded through the Dark Portal just like the one father fought in, but it seems like father is in for more glory once again." Relvalt explained.  
"Enough people have died in these past few weeks let it be finished!" I stood up and screamed as I pounded the table.  
Relvalt just gave me a blank scared look. "He's right Relvalt, but don't worry your time will come." Saidan cut in.  
"I'll tell you what Lieutenant Ace." Relvalt said with a smile  
"Lieutenant?" I asked.  
Relvalt nodded "When Arthus comes back there's going to be a huge celebration I'll announce your promotion there, and if you are inching for revenge we can kill these undead monsters together."  
I smiled and sat down."I wouldn't have it any other way."  
We shook hands "After what I heard you did to Uther and those Scourge outside I can just imagine."  
I felt the blood in my face leave, "How do you know about the Scourge I killed, did you have me followed?"  
Relvalt laughed, "No of course not." Relvalt looked away and back at me, "I followed you."  
A wave of shock fell through my spine, I wanted to say something. "Why would you do that Relvalt, you know the dangers of wondering out into the woods?" Saidan ordered with concern.  
Relvalt shrugged, "After what I heard from Uther I could hardly believe what he told me. Now I believe it, change is coming to the Silver Hand Saidan and when the time is right I'm going to need soldiers, especially mages that won't be afraid to take decisive actions." Relvalt looked over me and winked, "Right John Ace?"  
I nodded, "Of course sir. I won't let you down."

Well that went a lot better than I hoped for, I had lost everything but maybe Arthas did what he felt was right. I put down my bag and looked at Kel'Thuzad's Cult of the Damned robes fall out.  
No, it was his fault, everything. If there is a chance I could lead him to Stratholme would I have to kill him, the soul of my people demand it?

What if Kel'Thazud did lead the Cult of the Damned, but how? A mage just kicked out of Kirin Tor couldn't just lead people to their deaths, Kel'Thazud never was all that great with people, and it's so hard to see him as this great cult leader. Death threats, promises of power, he was willing to teach me because the price was right. The real question is why'd he get kicked out, what did he learn? Was it that forbidden ice ritual? No, there had to of been something more, he knew something more, that I'm sure of it. How many more forbidden spells did you learn Kel'Thuzad? It was him "Power is everything."  
I said out loud. This is my new quote. I wonder when Arthus will return from Northrend. I thought about the party in Lorderon and funeral for the people that had died. They would be missed but as a Lieutenant in the Silver Hand I would help rebuild, but still going to feel good killing every one of those undead. "Undead?"  
I said out loud. I stood up from my bed. I got dressed in my elven robes that were now clean; I looked up into the night sky from my new room, the moon bigger from my window. I used a feather spell to slow fall to the nearby sables and summoned the mage horse Helios "Hey buddy."  
I said fire burning from his mane and tail, the flames subsided as he nuzzled my face with his nose. "Yeah, I missed you too." I kissed him on his head, padded him on the side and jumped on his back. "You going to have to turn that off for a few seconds, we're going to check for something." When Helios wasn't covered in flames he looked like a common chestnut horse lacking a mane and hair on his tail. He refused to wear a saddle and I had to really beg him to take him somewhere. But he was okay with outside riding as long as he decided where we were going and he always ran if there were signs of danger. We ran away from the mansion but once we were out of sight, Helios came to a walk and turned his flames back on lighting our way. "Tell me if you see any Scourge but try stay on the road okay?" About 3 hours of riding in the night Scourge have taken over towns, farms, houses, and I'm sure if I made the trip I would find Strathdom I would find more. Mindless as they seemed to be it would have to be poison to make change to people this quickly. It would take a lot of time to change it back to the way it was, but I was willing to put in the work. There was a question that kept ringing in my head, if Mel'Ganis was dead how where these things still here. A demons curse or blessing would normally leave when that demon was gone. Maybe dreadlords are different, I'm not a warlock but there still seems to be something very wrong here.

Two days have come to past and the vial I gave to Revalt I heard was gone. I haven't told anyone I have one more left. I don't know why I haven't told anyone about it, I've lost my ability to make good bread and water, and I haven't really lost my edge in the arcane but using those forbidden spells Kel'Thuzad taught me has left me more drained then they uses to. I know I will need this elixir when I kill Arthus. Besides everyone with deep pockets that thinks there sick is already on their way to Silvermoon, as long as they stay on the road they should be fine. I guess there was one thing good about the Scourge, no bandits or highway robbers. Besides I wanted to see this Arthas for myself, if he was as promising as the king made him out to be, maybe he could answer my questions "Are you ready, sir?"  
My assistant asked. I put on my best Silver Hand robes, and the horse I was to ride had been dressed up too. I wanted to have fun for the first time I heard about Strathdome, "Okay I'm ready to meet this Arthas." I said as I got ready.  
"Sir, I know what Arthas did to your people but you're not thinking of..." the gnome explained.  
"No." I shook my head, "I've read the dates on the reports I was very lucky. I knew I was infected because I found a cure. If I decided to visit home that day and ate something I wouldn't be standing here right now. Besides if Arthus hadn't chased off Mel'Gainis by the Light would wonder what he would lead the Scourge to do. A cure would be worthless."  
The gnome smiled. "Well that's good to hear. Well I hope you have a good time."  
I smiled "Me too. Can you hand me that bag please?"  
The gnome nodded "Yes sir." She grabbed the bag. "Oh my, it's cold."  
"I keep it encased in ice." I explained,  
"I wish I knew magic." The gnome complained.  
I nodded "Well it's very good at times, but the arcane arts are more useful in times of peace. I guess it's why were not called warlocks." I said with a laugh, but I got nothing from the gnome. "It's a joke."  
The gnome laughed. "I don't get it."  
I left the mansion nice and normal, I wanted people to see me dressed up when I walked outside, but it was just my horse though. "Where's Relvant?" I asked an outside guard,  
"He's sick, but don't worry sir, we all know about your promotion they'll be more Silver Hand officers at the party."  
I was a bit concerned "He doesn't have?"  
The guard shook his head. "No, it's something else."  
I shrugged "That's too bad."  
The courtyard bells could be heard all the way from the mansion, I rode and the outside gates were littered with flower peddles. As I stabled my horse and I saw a black figure go into the throne room, "Is that him?" I asked the stable keeper.  
"Yes that's our prince." I nodded  
"The hero of Lorderon wears all black, which seems fitting for a murderer." I said out loud.  
"It takes one to know one, John."  
I looked over at the sable keeper, "What did you say?"  
He looked over at me, "I didn't say anything."  
I walked toward throne room "Kel'Thuzad?" I said in my head.  
"Yes now you understand, this is your destiny." Kel'Thuzad whispered.  
"Maybe, but why would you let yourself get killed?" My thoughts with Kel'Thuzad were interrupted and I heard people screaming from inside and the doors flew open with people running for their lives, I saw Arthas tiring into the Lorderon guards. He stopped and looked at his blade and said "This kingdom shall fall and from the ashes raise a new order, which will shake the very foundation of the world!"  
He continued to kill after that, there were people that fell and he kicked them into a large pile of corpses on the ground he lifted up his blade and made them come back to life as undead. I continued to walk toward him like a single stone in a stream as people continued to bump me as they ran for their lives. His army of dead made hissing and grunting noises as they ran toward me or whatever they were chasing after. I froze them all in place and blasted them with a few arcane blasts continuing to walk toward him. "What the hell was that supposed to mean?!" I asked.  
He sat in his father's throne, spinning the blade he was holding. "Who are you, mage?"  
He said as he leaded to one side of the throne."My name is Lieutenant John Ace, you killed everyone in my city and you framed and killed my master Kel'Thuzad, but you know I'm glad you showing your true colors now. Now I see that you are being true, seeing you here."  
Arthas shrugged, "That's not all true, and this blade Frostmorne has given me so much power. It has given me a vision and it hungers for souls. I think it would like to feed on yours, John."  
He held up the blade admiring the runes. I used a frost shield that made my whole body steam. "Power is everything Arthas. I wonder what power that sword will give me, no Arthas, the next soul Frostmorne will take is yours."  
If frost wouldn't work on this guy I'm sure fire will, I conjured up the strongest fire spell I can muster. He put up is hand and stopped the flaming boulder by turning it into ice and smashing it on the floor. "Is that the best you could do? I thought Kel'Thuzad would of taught you a few more things that." Arthas said laughing.  
Normal spells won't work of this guy. I took the vial out of my bag and drank half of it; the rest is for you my love. If I have to break both of this guy legs and drag him to you then I'll do it. I feel my power go up ten-fold, "Try this out for size!"  
I summoned the flaming horse Helios but three horses were standing in front of me one was red, white and purple. I knew them all by name; Helios, Avalanche, and Viole. I was able to summon them one at a time but never all at once. Arthas placed his hand on his forehand and let out a loud laugh in his fathers throne, "Horses?" Arthas continued to laugh, "You're going to kill me with horses?!"

Helios stepped forward, charged a fireball, and the two other followed with their respected elements frost and arcane. Arthas cut the fireball in half pushed the frostbolt away with his free hand but the arcane missiles nailed him four times in the face. Arthas staggered as each hit him. I charge another Pyroblast it was a long spell to cast but I knew my horse would keep him busy. Helios charged him knocking down off the stairs onto the floor but Arthas landed on his feet. "Come and get me beast!" Arthas taunted.

Helios screamed, his flames from his mane and tail grew bigger and he jumped off the stairs hoping to crush him underfoot. Avalanche and Violet dealt with the large abominations that rose from the pale of corpes freezing them in place and blasting them with arcane magic. Arthas moved ot the right spin 360 degrees and sliced through Helios back but he was a fire horse. He blew up in a explosion of fire and ice knocking Arthas into the wall cracking it but staying on his Pryoblast was ready to fly. The large fiery boulder nailing him in his whole upper body, this time he went down laying on the ground some of his hair and cape burning. The room was clear, I dismissed my mage horses, and walked toward Arthas, "Yes Arthas, horses, that spell was too good for you, but it's your ticket to the Twisting Nether." I stated.  
Arthas was still alive I could hear him breathing like he was out of breath, "You're not bad at this. You fight like you're not holding anything back, unlike Jania." Arthas stood up holding his chest, the fire from his hair and cap went out as the rune of Frostmorne glowed. "I would even go as far to say that I underestimated you alibies."

"What are you? How could survive that?" I asked.

"I am, " Arthas looked at his blade and closed his eyes, "I am, YOUR KING!"  
He tried to swing at me with his blade but I teleported behind him, "To slow, prince."I smashed the ground trapping him putting him in an Icey Coffin he tried to move but couldn't but he kept his eyes shut. "I see you have no abilities yourself, just brute force, and that sword. The blade with be mine, Arthas." I started my Ice Ritual, forbidden magic was so much fun. No one ever thinks that you have these aces up your sleeves until it's too late. I circled around him the same way I did with Nelson, his lower body was covered in ice leaving him stuck in place "Goodbye murderess prince. That blade should be in the hands of someone that can actually use it." I placed my hand on the ground and saw the elevan writing glow under his feet.I heard the ice lances coming from the ground but this time I would watch. I would watch as they tore into this traitorous prince body to pieces. Frostmorne will be mine and I will use it to find Vorioia in Stratholme. The spikes went up through the ground but they didn't break through his armor. That sword of his was glowing with such bright blue so bright I had to look away. I heard my Icily Coffin smash into a thousand pieces and felt a strong force grab me by my neck. He picked me up by the throat "Can you fight this close, John. You are much more powerful than Kel'Thazud when I killed him."  
I held on to his hands trying in incased them in ice. He laughed and shook me a little and the frost I put on his armor fell like pieces of snow. "But Frostmorne hungers."  
He was about to impale me with his blade but I incased myself in ice making him drop me on the ground. He pulled his hand out of the ice away from my throat, he turned his back on me and turned around and put Frostmorne right through my Ice Block spell. That's never happened before, or maybe it has, just no one was able to live through it, I feel myself go light headed and everything is numb the Ice Block broke into a thousand pieces but I couldn't feel anything. I guess the frost was helping out with that, at least with my death would be painless.

I had fought bravely; I may have helped some people escape that bloodbath. The Light will embrace me. I looked up and there it was, the Light. I saw my family, friends, everyone in Stratholme and even Sargent Nelson, I hoped he wouldn't be to mad at me for killing him, but I didn't see her, and I didn't see Kel'Thazud. "Vorioia are you there?" I yelled.  
I looked down on my own dead body it hadn't become one of the undead. "You won't find her there."  
I saw him, in the flesh... so to speak. "Kel'Thazud?" I asked.  
I looked over at my own body Arthas was trying to make me come back as a Scrouge monster but it didn't seem to be working though. "I said to follow him not try to kill him. I see your overconfince.. "  
I interupted him, "Was the death of me. I know master, but what about you. Why did you let yourself get killed?"  
Kel'Thuzad looked over at Arthas, "There isn't much time John, Arthas needs you follow him, do everything that he says, and I promise you, you'll see her again."  
I sighed, he wasn't a good man when he was alive but I always trusted him to be honest. If there was some kind of forbidden spell I didn't know about to bring back the dead I would settle for that. I missed her so much, her hair, her eyes, her voice, her body, her smell. I missed being with her, being in love with her, her being in love with me; this whole world could burn as long as I can be in her embrace again. I saw everything turn blue. "Araise Jaundace."  
I felt a pain in my chest, how could I feel pain when I'm dead, everything went blue again. "Araise Jaundace."  
"I'm coming Arthas. Power is everything. Power to protect the one you love. I will let nothing stop me from gaining more power."  
I followed the blue light and I woke in my body again. "Jaundace." Arthas said.  
"I understand now. I will follow and serve you, Prince Arthas." I said with a bow.  
"You can speak?" Arthus asked surprised.  
"Of course I can speak." I stated, "My place is by your side, I understand now."  
Arthas seemed a bit surprised that a person who nearly killed him was speaking and in such a way." Use your fire to burn this kingdom to the ground."  
"Yes your highness." I burnt down everything that could go up in flames and froze everything that breathed and walked the earth, to the roots of its foundation, and not just the men, but the women and children as well.  
"Good, now come with me, mage." Arthas brought two large sprint men back to life and bones and muscle began to form from the ground binding together into a horse. Arthas jumped on the back of it and in that very second he was gone in a flash of blue light  
"Arthas?" I yelled, "Your highness? Follow you, you said if I followed you would lead me to her, where are you?! ARTHAS!"  
I walked out the city gates, other Scourge seemed to have followed. "Look he has the Silver Hands sable he's, he's..." someone spoke but I didn't want to look in their faces, I didn't want hear there screams as they ran away from me.  
"John? That voice, what did he do to you?" The towns person said  
"Kill them, kill them all. It is his will, and it must be done." I heard Kel'Thazud's voice. I didn't look at their faces, ice silenced there screams. Fire made it worst and seeing these Scourge go into every house-hold and turn whole families into undead, I was doing them mercy by killing them painlessly, but I could feel it was making my powers grow and that was the only thing that matters. Vorioia, please understand that I'm doing this for you. Where are you Arthus, everyone in the city will soon be dead. I can't remember anything but you, Kel'Thazud and Vorioia. My name Jaundace. I think back on my memories and that's all I can remember, she and I are in love she and I are the only people in the world and the only things that matter, but how can I follow you if I have no idea where you are, how do I find her. My powers have grown ten-fold but I need more. My chest started to hurt again not the cold chill Arthas had put on me it was hungry for something more, blood maybe. Kel'Thazud said to kill them all, it was his will, but he never said how. Maybe there was something in a nearby farm.

I had been walking on all fours my chest burning, my stomach aching for hunger, my head pounding. The nearby houses and the cities were completely burnt down but this farm is a good five miles away from Lorderon. The pain, this hunger is eating away at my whole body, what was it? There must be someone in this farm who could help me but why would no one help me. I've killed so many people. I fell on flat holding on to my chest I looked up and was greeted by a blonde little girl, "Are you okay, you don't look so good."  
I didn't know what to say, I was afraid I would hear Kel'Thuzad's voice again or Arthas's emotional pulls. "Mommy, it's one of the Silver Hand people, but he doesn't look very good."  
The middle age woman came by to collect her daughter, "Molley get away from it, it's one of those Scourge!"  
The woman pulled out a kitchen knife to defend herself but I spoke out, "No, I'm not."  
The woman picked up her daughter, "No he's not, see he talks."  
She looked over me "Sir, have you been infected? If you have, please stay away from here, the priest at the Chaple of Light they might be able to cure you."  
I shook my head, "Please, the pain. I'm so hungry."  
She put down her daughter, "Sweetie, go inside."  
The little girl ran inside. "I guess I could give you something to eat and show you the way."  
She was strong enough to pick me up, tough, but still sweet enough to help me. "Thank you, you remind me of my fiancée."  
I told her I was one of the last people the survived the blood bath in Lorderon. And that Arthas had betrayed his kingdom and did something to me. She told me that her husband was stationed in the mansion where I was, but only as a guard. The pains I was getting weren't being settled with food and hot tea. But it was nice of her to help me, I pretended that it helped. "Listen Jaundace, I think you said your name was? If anyone can cure you I'm sure Uther the Lightbringer could, I'll take you down there myself. I've seen people grow sick from this disease but they just ended up turning into those mindless monsters. You seem different."  
I took a sip of my tea "Well I heard he was bedridden."  
A faint memory came back and when went away, "How could I know that?" I thought.

She looked away from me, "You know I heard that too. But I saw him just yesterday and he seemed okay to me. I guess he bounced back."  
"Well I guess I'll head over there. I thank you for your help." I said as I tried to get up, the pain in my chest wasn't making it easy for me to stand. She caught me before I hit the ground, "No, Jaundace. I'll take you there; I know you tried your best to try to stop Arthas from killing everyone. Do you think you can ride a horse?"  
I nodded "What is your name by the way."  
I asked as she put my arm over her head. "It's Laura. I don't want to leave Molley here by herself so can you hold her."  
I got on the back of the horse and lefted Molley her up in front of me. "Where are we going?" Molley asked  
"Were going to the Chapel of Light." I said.  
"Are they going to have good food there?" she asked.  
I smiled and conjured bread right in front of her. "Here eat, this."  
She took the bread and ate it. "Wow this is really good."  
We rode off and took to the Chapel, "Stay near the lake we won't run into any Scourge if we keep our backs to the water!" She was right I mean the terrain was a little hard on the horses but Scourge was nowhere to be found. It wasn't long before I could see the Chapel. "Okay I think this is far enough. I can make it the rest of the way."  
Laura shook her head "Jaundace, if they see you the way you look now they might think your one of the Scourge I'll tell them that you come in peace and Uther will try to help you."  
I guess she was right, but what was wrong with me? I haven't looked in a mirror or seen myself in the water since I left the mansion. She got off the horse ahead of me and got pretty far, "Hey wait up!" I said as she ran ahead.  
I saw her get out of sight I hurried over toward her and heard her scream. I stopped, "Mommy?"  
I heard Molley voice and froze, "Molley."  
I said as I got off the horse, "I want you to ride this horse the same way we came; I want you to go where your daddy works okay?"  
"Jaundace, what are you doing?" Molley asked. It's wasn't Kel Thazud, it was Arthas, I could tell he was nearby.  
"Molley please," I tried to say as calmly as I could. "Your mommy will meet you there soon; I have to stop some really bad people from hurting your mommy, okay."  
She grabbed the horses leads and left. "Please Arthas, just leave her alone."  
I ran over to where Laura was she was surrounded by Scourge and hutched over where Uthers body was. "You bastard, how could you do this to your teacher, how could you do this to Uther!?" Laura shouted.  
I pushed my way through the group of Scrouge and there he was, Arthas. "Jaundace where have been, I've been looking all over you, great job in Lorderon by the way, you flamed it up really good. I don't think it will ever be the same."  
She looked over at me, "You did what?"  
I put up my hands. "Please, I'm sorry. I knew it was wrong but it was the only way I could see her again. I was hoping Uther could cure her."  
She was breathing heavily tears falling from her face "For what? I helped you, for what?!"  
Arthus just stood there laughing at me. "Laura please, just go, it was a mistake to have helped me but please... for your daughter, just walk away now!"  
She looked around, looked at Arthas, and looked at me. She was about to walk through the crowd of Scourge but was yanked off by Arthas spell, "I'm sorry Jaundace, but Frostmorne hungers."  
He grabbed her by her throat and lifted her up and was about to impale her on Frostmorne."Wait Arthus, she led me to you. She helped you by bringing me to you. I want to help you, but you can't take her life." I explained.  
Arthus laughed at me. "What makes you think I need you now?"  
He continued to look in her eyes as he was about to stab her "You hear his voice too don't you Arthas?"  
He stopped "What?" he asked.  
"Don't play dumb with me. My former master speaks to you as he speaks to me. I know where he's buried. You can waste time looking at the place you left him to rot, you can waste time torching me until I speak or you can spare her and I can just show you where he is." I explained.  
Arthus breathed out hard and put her down, I caught her before she could hit the ground, she coughed as she tried to catch her breath. "Fine, I will spare her. I care little for these people, let's go."  
She pushed me away, "Don't touch me monster."  
I heard the grunts and hisses of the Scourge, "Oh by the way Jaundace. I said 'I' would spare her, I didn't say anything about them."  
I looked over at him. "Then you're about to lose a lot of your men!"  
Arthus turned his horse around "Oh, well this should be entertaining then."  
The Scourge had us surrounded "Laura this is going to hurt me a lot more then it's going to hurt you."  
There chopping and grunting got louder as they began to get closer. "What are you going to do?" she asked.  
I felt my blood turn cold I pounded the ground putting every one of these Scrouge and Laura in Ice Coffin's. I teleported to the outside and summoned a fire horse that burned every Scrouge in its path and another one, and another one, and another one. Four burning horses burned through and melted the ice around her. I felt pains in my chest again, these forbidden spells were taking a toll on me. She was passed out but the Scrouge were burnt to a crisp. The four horses stood in front of me. "Dismissed." I said and broke the spell.  
I heard Arthas clapping his hands in front of me, "Bravo, bravo, now that was an entertaining light show. You are much more useful to me the way you are now then, then like one of these undead I command." I picked her up and put inside one of the big ugly white Scourge it was heated up pretty good. She wouldn't like where she woke up but at least she would still be alive when she did wake up. I got on the back of other horse and followed Arthas "So where is your former master? Was he as powerful as you are Jaundace?"  
I nodded my head, "He was much more power than I am, what you just saw was forbidden arcane magic. He could use that Ice Coffin spell from yards away. And he could ride those nightmares I just summoned the same way we ride these horses you see."  
Arthas thought back, "Well he never used spells like that when I killed him."  
I closed my eyes for a second, it was hard to believe I was talking to my master murderer and he was bragging about it. "Arthas, my powers with the arcane grown quite a bit since you brought me back from the dead. My guess, is that he must have wanted you to use that sword to being him back so his power would grow as well, but why are you in the Chapel of Light?"  
Arthas gestured behind us. "You see that meat wagon behind us, it held an urn that held my fathers ashes. We're going to put your master's remains in there."  
I smiled at him "How kind of you. This way sire."  
I lead them to the place where we buried him and saw the staff I had left for his head stone. "I guess I'll be taking this back from you."  
I took the staff and placed it on my back. "Come old friend, the powers you once commanded are in needed once again." Arthas said. "Prince Arthus, you can't raise Kel'Thuzad's remains from here." A Cult of the Damned associate said from behind us said. "Can't you just raise the remains where they lay." the associate shook his head, "No, only a contracted area of arcane magic can bring a mage of his power back to life."

I thought back, "The high elves sunwell?"

I felt him smile under his black cloak "That's right, it's a long trip so the only way Master Kel'Thuzad's remains will survive the trip is to place them in this urn." I smiled because it was leading me to the sunwell again. "Arthus I have one other request, if you'd be so kind."

Arthus rolled his eyes, "Well that depends on the request, I don't like sparing my enemies."

I laughed, "No, I need high elf blood so I can make more of these."

I showed him the half drunken bottle. "This is my last one and it's the reason my powers have gone up so much when we were fighting in Lorderon."

Arthas nodded, "I did wonder about, I wondered what the hell you were drinking, why you able to cast so many forbidden spells without getting tired."

I smiled, "That's not the best part."

I conjured water and gave it to him, Arthas pushed it away. "I don't like mage water Jaundace, but it's nice of you to offer."

I put it back in his way, "Just try it."

Arthus gave a deep sigh and snatched it away from me, "Fine, but you know poisons won't kill me." He drank it. "Wow this is good."

I laughed "I told you."

Arthus smacked me on the back, "And you can do this by drinking high elf blood? I think we should get you a lot more then; you'll to be up to you neck with it. Associates of the Cult of the Damned, eat hardy because the food and drinks are on him!" Every mage hates it when this happens, I was afraid his might happen, I was put on the back of the meat wagon forced to make water and bread for most of the trip. I guess I never really knew what it was like because everyone I ever gave bread and water to complained about the taste. I started to think if I was making Arthas's army addicted to the bread. But maybe it was something else. Most of the cult members were skinny, my guess as most of them have never even tasted something that was sweet. Some of them just came and drank one after the other, after the other. I was making Arthas army fatter, I just hoped that we could make it to the sunwell, and it wouldn't be my fault for over feeding all the warlocks.


	3. Chapter 3 Parkingsons

(Warning: This chapter's a bit disturbing)

"Let me go elf, when my people find me here what do you think they'll do to you and your people?" The elven taskmaster slapped me with her nails putting not just pain in the impact but putting more scratches on my face.

"You and your friend Parsons killed six of our people and you dared attack our prince, I only wish he hadn't ended his life so quickly." She claimed.

My name is Jacob Parkingsons and I have no idea how I got here, one of my squad members John Ace made a potion that made me pass out, but when I woke up I didn't feel the call of the Scourge, for whatever good it was. Now I'm being tortured, "I told you I don't remember doing that, if I am guilty of those crimes then kill me." I begged.

The taskmaster put some green ooze on a tip of a needle and put the tip into my neck, "This will stop every muscle in your body from moving, but don't worry you'll still be able to feel everything." She stated.

The taskmaster opened up a large leather satchel of various sized shining steel needles and put them on the table across where I was chained to the wall. "Listen I'm sorry, if you want money I got it, in my home in Lordaeron and….. ahhh, aaahhh" I couldn't speak anymore

I couldn't move my jaw or head, a pain swelled up inside my head, and I could feel drool start to fall down the side of my mouth, "Thank goodness I thought you would never shut up," The taskmaster said, "a little high elf poison our rangers mixed up, I'm glad to see you're enjoying it."

I couldn't move my arms and my legs next. I had tried to make an effort to keep my body up right to remove some stress on my wrist and hands, but I couldn't move an inch and I could feel the iron binding tiring in to my flesh putting stress on my bones. "So, you say you don't remember, I believe you, you didn't start talking until yesterday, I gave you that same poison and it didn't have this effect. Poor Parkingsons is now completely the victim now."

"If she knows that then why hasn't she let me go?" I thought

She looked at me, smiled, and shrugged, "But what can I say, I'm bored? I never get to do things like this, I don't even get to test my poisons on animals, better yet a human." She explained.

She got right in my face, she was very beautiful, glowing blue eyes with short black hair tied back in a knot, slim petite body, you would never think someone as small and innocent-looking as her would like to do things like this. "So, you can blink still, that's perfect." She stated.

She walked to her table, took another needle and dipped it in a red ooze this time. "Parkingsons, I'm going to ask you how you're feeling, and if the answer is yes blink once, it the answer is no blink twice."

"Does she really think I'm going to go through something like this?" I thought. I felt the stress on my bones slowly dislocating or breaking my bones, "Does she really think a poisonous needle is going to be worst then this?" I thought. I tried to make some kind of noise, some way I could tell her that it felt like my arm was about to break off.

"Oh, shut up I haven't even touched you yet." She stated as she waved her hand at me.

She put the needle into the flesh of my neck, I felt it go down my collar bone, and it burned like fire, but it didn't compare to the feeling in my wrist, the feeling of pressure on my forearm like it was about to break off, "Deeper, deeper, deeper." She chanted and tilted her head to the side, "That strange, either you have a very high pain threshold or…"

She looked to her left and right, but it was too late, my wrist made a very painful disturbing popping noise and I fell face first in into the hard glass floor. Lights went out and I could feel myself slipping away, by the Light I hoped I was dead.

I felt something grasp me by the head, and I saw a demon look into my eyes, "Is this the Twisting Nether?" I asked.

The demon smiled and shook his head, "No, but I would take the nether over what you're going through right now and about to go through when you wake up."

"The answer's still no." I said.

The demon shrugged, "Fine, I could speed up your recovery, so you could live one maybe two weeks in your hostess's care. She hasn't stopped poking you with her poisons. I have kept you alive, I can keep keeping you alive, or you can just give in and we can both kill this bitch."

I looked at my options, she would keep trying more and more painful techniques, but I wondered if she'll be able to figure out that there was something that has been trying to pull my strings. "I've never seen you before, who are you. A female demon named Kalwen would always ask me if she could borrow my body in exchange for power and lust. Why you, who are you?"

The demon gave a deep sigh, "Kletzekeel is my name, but don't bother trying to pronounce it, just call me felguard. It's what your people call us. The woman you've been seeing is a succubus, and it's a normal way we find new host, but in your case, I think you're looking for protection more than your need for power."

"Why me, I can't even use magic?" I asked.

The felguard crossed his arms and looked away from me, "I'm going to tell you something that goes against everything. We've been able to see how long a life you had to live, it was a long life and I needed it. I can't tell you how long it was but now it's pretty short."

I looked at him questionably, "So why don't you just save my life from this woman?"

The felguard grabbed me by my throat and lifted me up, but I could still breathe. "I want your body and I want your life, but I'm not going to give up my existence for a few extra years in the mortal world. The choice has to be yours to let me take over as my vessel. Make the choice Parkingsons because I think you're about to wake up."

I felt the splash of freezing cold water on my face, but this time I was tied to a chair, my face hurt so badly and there was a number of seemingly flexible needles in my legs and chest. "How long were you doing this?" I asked as I looked down in shock.

She looked at me, "I guess the first poison has worn off."

I still couldn't move my body, but I could still talk.

"Don't worry there are no poisons on those needles, it would have killed you, but those are just for decoration, but you didn't wake up until I poured the water on you. Maybe I should try something that feels a bit colder, you might be able to feel it more." She explained.

The taskmaster put a larger needle into blue ooze and sat on my lap bending all those needles in my legs into my flesh. "Felguard!" I screamed out in pain.

She looked at me confused and in a slight panic, but then she started laughing, "You're not a mage little man, or a warlock." She claimed.

She licked the side of my face, "Nope, there's no arcane energy in your body. Your friend on the other hand, he might have been able the conjure something."

"Felguard!" I yelled, "I give into you, I am your vessel!" She jammed the large needle into the other side of my throat, and I felt the cold chill. Some of it was making my body shake, "C-C-C-Cold." I stuttered.

The taskmaster smiled, "Thank you, what a good little guinea pig you are."

I wondered why the demon wasn't showing up, I wondered if they were just dreams, had I been having just dreams, out of some line of hope? I also wondered why I would keep having them, I said what he wanted. "Don't worry this should take the edge off, I only got to use this once before you passed out but let's try it someplace else." She explained.

It was smaller; she dipped in the same red ooze before I passed out. The name, what was his name, "Kalwen!" I said, " Please help me, please, I give in."

I saw her, the succubus, without a mask this time, she would normally show up as a girl I liked, or just someone I was very deeply attracted to, but I didn't have the guts to talk to. Always in my dreams, but this time I saw her for what she was. Still she was even more deeply attractive and tempting as any mortal man could ever need, but she was clearly still a demon. She had black horns, hooves, and a tail, but she also looked so human in the places it mattered for a woman, "The pain must be making you delusional, I should write this down." The taskmaster said.

Kalwen the succubus walked in and I couldn't take my eyes off her, she wrapped her soft skinned arms around my neck and leaned her head against mine, "I appreciate the offer," she whispered, "but I don't get too watch things like this very often."

I started to breathe hard, tears were falling from my face, "Kalwen, please help me, she's going to kill me."

Kalwen pointed at her, "No she won't, I can tell she is very skilled." Kalwen walked right up to her, whispered in her ear, "Put a smaller needle in the corner of his eye but be careful you don't pop it, or you'll have a big mess on your hands." All the while looking back and forth at me as she smiled gleefully.

"SHE IS HELPING HER TORTURE ME, AN NOW SHE SMILING ABOUT IT?!" I thought, "Okay maybe this lady was right, maybe I am delusional- this demon woman isn't here, I can't summon demons, I'm not a mage, or a warlock, this isn't happening." I thought as I shook my head, trying to force myself not to see her.

"You know I just had a crazy idea." The taskmaster stated.

"No, no this can't be happening." I stated, "Kalwen the felguard what was his name? K-k –keel, Kay-ze-keel."

The taskmaster looked at me questionably, "Who are you talking to Parkingsons?"

I was breathing hard, "A demon, I summoned a demon, and she right there, don't you see her? She going to kill you!"

Kalwen the succubus rolled her eyes, "She can't see me or hear me Parkingsons, unless I want her to, but if it makes you feel any better you did summon me, you're not delusional."

I looked down and thought out loud, "I did summon her. Meaning I could summon another, I only knew Kalwen because she been in more of my dreams, okay concentrate, what was his name? It began with a K"

In a flash the taskmaster was behind me and stabbed me in the neck again, I could feel my body and jaw start to lock again.

"Kay Keel, Key zeel, Kay leta- keel," I mumbled as I felt the poison taking it's effects, "….Kay- let-za-keel I.. am your.. vessel.." And I could move anymore.

The taskmaster gave a sigh of relief, "Man I thought you would never shut up, I think it's better like this, no more talk of demons, it's really giving me the creeps."

She brought me on the chair closer to the table and sat on my lap again, I made a shake of pain convulsion, and she dug the flexible needles in my muscles and flesh again as she sat down on me again, "There, now I don't have to walk back and forth." She reached back and grabbed a needle, dipped it in red ooze, the burning kind. She circled the needle around my eye, I looked over at Kalwen, her hand over her face dripping with excitement, I closed my eyes as hard as I could.

She pulled back my hair and forced my eye to open with her fingers dripping a small bit of burning poison on top on my eye lid. I manage to close before it could get in, but I felt it burning on the outside of my eye lid. She forced open my eye again letting some of it in, I screamed in pain, my voice muffled as I could move my jaw, "The more you struggle the longer this will take." She said.

I could feel tears forming in my eye and couldn't see. I didn't know if it was from the poison, or my emotional hopeless I was feeling. I tried to close my eye again she forced my head back and opened my eye, I couldn't see anything but the needle. I was trying to force my eye close, but I couldn't, I tried to scream, anything to escape this torture.

"Ah shit." I heard Kalwen say as she looked into a direction. In a flash I saw this taskmaster got whipped off my lap like a ragdoll. She grasped the wound across her shoulder and chest as she gasped for air as she was on the ground, "YOU BITCH, YOU KNOW HOW MUCH TIME THIS IS GOING TO COST US?!" The Felguard screamed.

Kalwen held up her hands in defense, "I wasn't going to let her kill him I swear! What's wrong with a little torture?"

The taskmaster was trying to crawl away, Kletzekeel threw his axe on the floor like someone might throw a small knife cutting the taskmaster in half.

"Hey I liked her!" Kelwen said angerly.

"Look outside Kelwen, the Scourge is marching through Silvermoon as we speak, if our host dies everything we worked for will be for nothing!" Kletzekeel stated.

The felguard picked me up and carried me, "You are my vessel now Parkingsons, but taking over your body will do me no good with all that poison in your system."

Demons are strange, it the time just really wanted to die, but then, I was being rescued, I would never would have thought.

The Felguard swing his free hand with an axe at the incoming Scourge of undead, but it was likely they were going to be overrun. Then a powerful fireball nailed the Felguard in the side of the face and I saw it was coming from an odd looking black and purple wagon, being led by a single horseman. "Succubus, deal with the mage on the meat wagon." Fel guard ordered.

"And how long do you think you'll last with all these undead? There stupid, but formidable, I think I have a better idea." Kelwen argued.

Kelwen broken into my mind like she had in my dreams, "Parkingson's be a doll and try to see though my eyes."

"You want me to see? I've never been able to do that before?" I stated in my head.

I heard Kelwen laugh in my head, "Your contract is made, you're going to find out all the wonderful powers at your disposal, just think about it and it will happen." She stated.

I did as she told I could see everything she was seeing but I couldn't tell her where to look she moved through the armies of undead with no effort and came upon the single horsemen. "Might I have a moment handsome knight?"

The knight seemed focused, but I knew that face. He looked over for a second and looked away. "That's Arthas Menethil the prince of Lorderon, he must be here to rescue me." I screamed in my head.

"Are you here to rescue one of your comrades?" Kelwen asked him.

Arthas broke into sudden laughter; the undead force stopped the attack for a few seconds, and he finally looked over at her. "Has Tichondrius sent jester demons to raise moral because it's working." He said laughing slightly.

"I am whatever you need me to be, handsome knight." My vision fell low I suppose Kelwen was bowing.

"Halt the attack!" Arthas ordered, I thought he was fighting these monsters not leading them, "Speak your piece demon, spare me your flattery."

Kletzekeel stepped forward from the army of undead, "We have a contract with this human. We only ask that you let us go in peace and allow us to walk away."

"Wait a second!" A voice in the distance said. Another undead stepped forward in Silver Hand mage robes.

"Parkingsons? Jacob Parkingsons," I was surprised undead knew who I was.

"You two know each other, Jaundace?" Arthas asked. "Please do not tell you want me to spare him too." He stated as he rolled his eyes.

The undead Jaundace laughed, "I could care less, yes we were friends, but by the looks of him he's not going to make it. But if demons are trying to save his life that means he's become a warlock now. We might be able to use him." Jaundace laughed, "Demons don't help people out of charity you know."

"Deals with demons can never go well for anyone, especially the one making it, I suggest you slaughter all three of them." Said a white, bridal dressed, undead ghost elf.

"Was that advice Sylvanas? Oh how quant." Arthas said with a laugh. The elf didn't move, just stared blankly.

"We can help you with whatever goals you wish," Kletzekeel pleaded, "or we can start a new contract with you in exchange for your… "

Arthas stepped off his horse, "My soul? You'll find I don't have one anymore."

Kletzekeel lowered his head, "We know, I sensed it when I came close."

Arthas pulled out his runeblade and smashed it through the felguard and my body, I finally felt death's cold embrace, but I knew I wasn't going anywhere good. I had already made my contract with the demons for a few more minutes of my life. I felt them, the hundreds of imps waiting to snack on my soul like a freshly baked turkey, and then, a cold blue energy came over me. The imps panicked like scared squirrels "Arise Parkingsons." a voice said.

I didn't fight it, anything was better than the fate that awaited me. I welcomed it, Arthas was my savor and I would serve him gladly. I awoke, the poison was gone, and the demons were gone, I felt somewhat more in control. "You have a new contract Parkingsons. Come with me as we destroy the sunwell."

"Thank you Arthas, it will be done." I said

"Guard the meat wagons." Arthas ordered.

Arthas broken through the High Elf defenses with my help, it felt so good to feel this new-found power and use it on the people who captured and tortured me. I laughed a heart joy I never experienced. Vengeance, there were no more deals with Kletzekeel the felguard or Kelwen the succubus. I was in complete control of their actions and they did not speak unless spoken to and my very thoughts were there orders. I can feel the pull of Frostmorne but his orders fell through me like stream, I did what I was ordered and I did it happily. Arthas destroyed the pathetic High Elves army and spilled the contents of our meat wagons into their precious sunwell. A skeleton, horned and grinning, it's eye sockets burning with fire. Chains snaked around it's purple vestments fluttered with its movement.

"I am reborn, as promised! The Lich King has granted me eternal life!" It said.

I heard Sylvanas scream in grief, but her body did not move. I laughed and clapped, so did Jaundace he seemed a bit more over joyed then I was through.

"I've upheld my end of the bargain, lich. Are you ready to tell me about the dreadlords now?" Arthas asked.

The figure turned toward Arthas, "Certainly. But not here. They have eyes and ears everywhere. We'll talk where it's safe."

"Master Kel'Thuzad!" Jaundace said.

"My former apprentice, it good to see you again." the Kel'Thuzad figure said.

"It's good to see you as well, I can feel your power, I've never felt anything like it!" Jaundace spoke, this reunion was making me sick, I could tell that Arthas felt the same way.

"When can we leave for Stratholme?" Jaundace asked like a child.

"Patience John, patience." The figure held up his hand at Jaundace.

"That isn't his name anymore lich, it's Jaundace. I have given him a new name and a new reason to live and he will obey." Arthas pointed his runeblade at Jaundace. "Bow, and say you will serve."

Jaundace looked side to side, "I will serve?" He looked at Arthas questionably.

The runeblade didn't have the glow it normally had and Jaundace didn't bow, "Arthas can you come with me?" Kel'Thuzad asked.

"Whatever you have to say you can say it here lich." Arthas retorted.

The figure looked over at Jaundace, "Could you give us a moment?"

Jaundace bowed, "Of course, master."

Jaundace walked away. Kel'Thuzad looked back at Arthas. "Arthas you may find out that there are some very strong forces that even you can't control, even with Frostmorne."

Arthas put Frostmorne behind his back and crossed his arms, "Oh really and what is that?"

Kel'Thuzad let out a deep sigh, "Love."

Both Arthas and Sylvanas said at the same time "Love?!" Both equally disgusted.

"How can that undead be free from this curse? I had love for my people and my lands and it didn't stop me from destroying my people's sunwell." Sylvanas explained.

Kel'Thuzad looked at her and a slight deep laugh could be heard from him, "What you had was duty and a selfless obligation to your people, but in the end, you think so little of yourself. You were aware that you were nothing but a tool for the High Elf army and are now a tool for the Lich King, but Jaundace is driven by another force, the drive to be with the woman he loves, which in the end is a selfish desire. Much like the pain, rage, and hate you feel that drives you now. I don't think Frostmorne sees the difference." Kel'Thuzad explained.

Arthas looked disgusted like he had eaten something rotten, "Two sides, but there the same coin. Maybe I just need to kill him and raise him back up again."

"That might work but Jaundace would no longer be as powerful as he is now and would be nothing but a mindless undead." Kel'Thuzad debated.

Arthas crossed his arms and thought, "Maybe, that mage nearly killed me, I never understood why Frostmorne had retorted so much at the thought of being stolen away, but if he had he would be in complete control over the blade and our destinies would never be complete. He's too dangerous, I will give him death's release."

Kel'Thazud towered over Arthas and his horse, "He will serve faithfully, and I gave him my word as his former master that I would see him reunited with his love Vorioia."

Arthas looked at him questionably, "Vorioia, as in Vorioia Pride, that's his lover?" Arthas shook his head as he recalled the memories.

I think if Kel'Thazud could smile I would have seen it, "You know each other." It came through in his voice.

"It was a brief encounter but one I could never forget, she's been dead for far too long, her bodies probably ashes by now. She drank the most foul-smelling poison I had ever smelled, and my men checked the body, she's dead." Arthas explained.

"Oh, you mean those five men that looted her corpse, no Arthas, her soul never left her body; she showed you what you needed to see. It was both of their destinies to be reunited so they may serve you. Think about it Arthas, you would have two powerful undead soldiers unlike the corpses you command, but strong and faithful. I know how taxing it is to control the ranger general." Kel'Thazud stated.

Arthas thought and thought for a few minutes, and then looked over at me, "Parkingsons might I have a moment?" He asked.

I summoned a dreedsteed, mounted it, and made my way over, "I have noticed controlling you has not been taxing whatsoever and I thought the very same thing about Jaundace. Are you driven by thoughts or feelings of love?"

I laughed, "No prince Arthas, I have no love in my heart, only a lust for vengeance. A few moments ago, I was being tortured by a high elf taskmaster; I am no longer tied to the demons that wish to control my body, and as for John, my former comrade." I took a few angry deep breaths, "I wish he had died before we came to this Light forsaken city. The torture, the demons, all of this could have been avoided if he had died in those woods. He has no love from me."

Arthas smiled, "Even though I may be able to control your every move and thought, it's good to know there are those that are truly faithful to our cause."

Arthas patted me on the back, "Come, to Stratholme we go." And he rode forward

"Wait, you're actually going?" I asked.

Arthas stopped and looked back at me, "Yes, but I'm taking you with me."

I shrugged, "Very well."

On the way there I rode by Arthas and Jaundace rode next to Kel'Thuzad even though Kel'Thuzad didn't need a horse. Arthas found the ranger general's body and put Sylvanas's soul back into it. On the way there I heard the words Dalaran and Arcane University come up from them several times as they both laughed, it was completely sickening. Arthas seemed to be holding the same level of resentment. "Why have you agreed to this Arthas, it is beneath you."

Arthas nodded in agreement, "Trust me warlock, I dislike this just as much as you do, but if you had seen that woman fight you would agree." He explained.

"What about the dreadlords, he was supposed to tell you about them." I asked.

Arthas looked over at me and sighed, "I don't fully trust Kel'Thuzad, I think there's more he's not telling me, but he said not to bring you with me. He says that whether you know it or not, the dreadlords will hear everything I say to you."

I lowered my head, "Yes he might be right, but I worry about this reunion. You can't control Jaundace and I don't think you will be able to control his lover."

Arthas nodded, "I know, which is why I brought you and put Sylvanas back in her old body, so it would at least be an even fight." Arthas looked over at Sylvanas and back at the two of them in front, "Look how loyal Jaundace is to his former master, if he had Frostmorne Kel'Thuzad could easily be a puppeteer." Arthas looked around, "It's only a few minutes till we arrive, ready your demons, Parkingsons."

I summoned a succubus and told her to stay hidden, "If everything goes as planned I will leave your side. I hate the fact that I am this mole to the Burning Legion."

Arthas smiled, "Thank you for your help Parkingsons, I will miss you, but your right."

Arthas got off his horse, and me and Jaundace only dismissed our horses, they disappeared into the nether. The city was still in flames when we got there and undead that were roaming about as we walked through the city street. They ran toward as is if they were going to attack. Arthas only shot them a glance and they were bowing like endangered servants. "That's were I left the body." Arthas said.

Jaundace ran toward the area, "She isn't here, but this is her house."

It was indeed the house, it was the only one that was never touched by the flames, "Vorioia!" Jaundace shouted.

"John, John is that you? Who's there, and why did you bring him here? Has he come back to try to finish me off?" It was indeed a woman, but I couldn't tell where it was coming from. Jaundace looked back at Arthas and Arthas shrugged.

"No, Arthas is here to help, it's me John." Jaundace explained.

"That's a common name." She retorted.

"It's me John Ace, we've known each other since we were kids, we agreed to get married when we were 16, and you named all the mage horses I was able to summon." He explained.

"John?!" I heard the sounds of footsteps come from the unburnt house, the door flew open, and a beautiful long red-haired woman in full plate armor and a large two-handed sword behind her back with a small frame burst through the door. Jaundace was a little hunch over so they were about the same height. "Kel'Thuzad said John would come back here, he said he would come. Where is he?" She said looking around.

Jaundace waved as if he was trying to get her attention. "Right here."

Vorioia reached over to him and touched the sides of his face and hair, "Your eyes are yellow. It looks like you haven't eaten in days, but I missed you so." She hugged him, I saw Arthas grab his chest like someone shot him with an arrow.

"Thank you Arthas, I forgive you for trying to kill me, thank you for bringing him back to me." She looked at Arthas with tears in her eyes and kissed Jaundace on the cheek and forehead.

They both just stood there hugging, Arthas stepped forward, "Do it Jaundace." He ordered.

Jaundace took a small dagger from his robes and stabbed it into the open part of her armor. Vorioia screamed convulsed at the sign of pain, "What are you doing John? Why are you?"

Jaundace whispered in her ear and laid her down, "It's okay my love, you have to trust me."

Vorioia laid on the ground tears falling from her eyes, "I love you, why are you doing this?" she said.

Jaundace stabbed her again, "I love you too, please just trust me." Jaundace returned.

Vorioia fell asleep and she bled out from the stabs to her kidney's, breathed her last breath and she was gone, her corpse laid on the ground in a puddle of blood. Arthas just stood with his head down holding his chest. Jaundace looked over back at him. "Well?!" Jaundace said as he gestured toward his dead beloved, with her blood on his hands.

"Jaundace you have nothing that ties you to this world, now your purpose is to serve ME!" yelled Arthas.

"What?!" Kel'Thuzad and Jaundace both said at the same time.

Sylvanas laughed, "I can't say I didn't see this coming."

"You, I'll kill you. You have no control over me spoiled prince. I should have done this at Light's Hope!" Jaundace yelled stepping forward fire burning in his eyes, hands, and mouth.

"But I do. John killing him won't bring your beloved back, but he can." Kel'Thuzad spoke and got in between Jaundace and Arthas, "Just calm down, Jaundace. He will see reason."

Kel'Thuzad turned around while Jaundace laid over his newly dead lover, I never thought undead could cry, but there it was.

"Arthas," Kel'Thuzad begin to explain, "We need them, it's their destinies to serve you."

Arthas pulled Frostmorne from his back and pointed it at Kel'Thuzad, "You keep saying that, but I fail to see for what purpose, other than to display disgusting acts of affection. I reunited them as I promised; I see the way you two talk to each other, I take it that this former apprentice of yours is the closest thing to a son you've ever had, but that was your old life lich. You will serve the will of the Lich King, you will not control it for yourself."

"Arise Vorioia." A completely different voice came out of Arthas's mouth, deep and distorted, Arthas held on to his throat like he had no idea what had happen. "What just happen?" Arthas spoke in his normal voice.

Kel'Thazud looked back at Vorioia, her body raising off the ground in midair, her skin turned gray, her hair turned green, and those bright glowing yellow eyes glowed brighter than any other undead I had seen raised. Kel'Thazud looked back at Arthas. "Don't think you know the will of the Lich King, you may be his champion, but I am his prophet." Kel'Thuzad claimed

I finally spoke out, "Arthas, maybe this isn't such a bad thing, if you didn't raise her this whole trip would be for nothing."

"Are you speaking against me too?" Arthas looked back at me.

Vorioia had risen as an undead, the two undead lovers were holding hands, and looking into each other's eyes. Vorioia open mouth kissed Jaundace, looked back at Arthas, and back at each other, "This feels good." She said.

"I know my love, and it will last forever." Jaundace said and began holding her in his embrace.

Arthas fell down on all fours holding onto his chest and Frostmorne with his free hand, "Jaina." Arthas whispered.

"Yes, now you're beginning to see." Kel'Thuzad said. Tears were falling from Arthas's face freezing as they touched the ground, "Your queen. Now you're beginning to understand the Lich Kings plan, now we can finally…" Kel'Thuzad continued.

"NO!" Kel'thuzad claims were interrupted as Arthas charged forward stabbing Jaundace and Vorioia pinning them both to the floor, "Frostmorne you are mine to command. FEED! Take all the memories, take all the power, all the love, and leave them nothing, empty. Until there nothing left but empty husk, I WILL NOT HAVE LOVE IN MY RANKS!"

They were drained, Sylvanas just sat there giggling to herself "Arthas, what have you done?!" Kel'Thuzad screamed.

Arthas stood up out of breath and removed Frostmorne from the two lovers bodies, "What is it lich? You've never seen me kill before?"

"You have doomed us all, Arthas!" Kel'Thuzad explained, "They were supposed to be the ones to bring Jania Proudmoore over to us."

Arthas spit, "Those two, Jania had her chance to be at my side and she walked away, and last time I checked we were winning this war."

Kel'Thuzad towered over Arthas, "Yes we are winning, and we will continue to keep winning, your power will be great, your armies unending, but sooner or later it will end. Without an heir, without someone to carry your seed, your kingdom will fall!"

"It might be sooner than you think, look." Sylvanas pointed at the two lovers, Jaundace had poured the contents of a bottle into Vorioia's mouth.

Vorioia coughed and moved Jaundace's body from hers. She stood up, her eye color changed from yellow to blue. I ordered my succubus to hold her in place, in a flash Vorioia spin and my demon was gone. I didn't even see her draw her sword and now it was out pointed right at us.

"It's the last of the sunwell's magic, I can still feel it in her." Sylvanas claimed, "Oh how quant, that we are going to die from the last few drops of its waters." Sylvanas laughed, "Oh the Light might have a sense of humor."

"Shut up Sylvanas." Arthas ordered.

"You let me keep my voice, so I can voice my pain but now look what you've done." Sylvanas teased.

"I order you to shut your mouth banshee!" Arthas ordered again.

"Didn't you hear Kel'Thuzad, you are doomed death knight, and you will never have complete control over this world and will never…"

Her teases were interrupted when a sword attached to a chain was plugged into her chest and she was dragged to where Vorioia was standing, she pulled Sylvanas to her. Me, Kel'Thuzad, and Arthas all watched in shock as she was pulled away, "She'll live." Arthas watched her drag with a smile, "At least I think she will." Arthas claimed as he laughed slightly.

Vorioia put her steel plate boot in the banshee's throat; she gagged as she tried to pull the sword from her chest. Arthas and I laughed as Arthas's banshee commander was being stomped out like a bug. "Vorioia, leave her be." Arthas said still laughing.

Vorioia pulled her sword from her chest and kicked Sylvanas away, "I…" Vorioia held on to her throat.

"Do you know who you are?" Arthas asked.

" Vorioia…" She held on to her throat, her words didn't come.

"It seems she can't speak but she still remembers how to fight." Kel'Thuzad said.

"And listen to my orders, maybe this won't be a complete loss." Arthas stepped forward toward Sylvanas and stepped on her chest, "Listen to me wench, I know how painful that was and I may have given you a voice to speak your pain and this goes out to all of you." Arthas looked at me and Kel'Thazud, "I will continue to build my army and my power. I will redouble my efforts to claim as many souls as I can, men, women, and children, I will find the most powerful generals to lead my armies, and whatever the Lich King wishes I will follow without question. But as a final act of love on my beautiful Jania Proudmore this curse will be mine alone to bear, I will not share it with her! IF ANY OF YOU EVER SPEAKS A WORD OF THIS CURSED NIGHT I PROMISE YOU A FATE AHUNDRED TIMES WORST THEN DEATH WILL FALL ON YOU!"

Arthas stepped off Sylvanas's chest and walked toward the gates of Stratholme, "What about her?" I asked.

Arthas looked into Vorioia's blue eyes, "Even though she is an undead, she is actually quite lovely, I can see why he loved her so much, but... " Arthas grabbed her by the hair, lifted up Frostmorne high, and cut off all her long beautiful green hair. "I will need some reminder of what I accomplished this night."

"And what about me?" I asked.

Arthas stopped, turned around, and pointed Frostmorne at me, "I'm ending my contract with you Parkingsons, you are free from my curse, and free to do whatever you wish." Arthas claimed.

I followed him out the gate of Stratholme when they made it to the bridge. I stopped and waved goodbye to my friend. I would make him proud; I would use my new found freedom to bring whatever his goals were. But while Arthas was somewhat far away he looked back at me, waved, and laughed. The felguard Kletzekeel and the succubus Kelwen were both standing next to me even though I didn't summon them. "What are you two doing here?" I asked.

"There is no one here but you and me." The felguard punched me in the face so hard it knocked me off the bridge and into the water. The succubus was stronger than I thought, she pulled my head out of the water.

"You thought the torture from that elven taskmaster was bad, wait until you see what demons have in store for you." Kelwen claimed. My so-called friend had put me back into the torture rack for a sick and cruel laugh.


	4. Chapter 4 Lachance

"Please don't die on me Perfectia." I looked into my bastard daughters eye's, her light was fading. Her mother entrusted her with me with her, but I've never been a father to her. I traveled the world as a librarian finding books and things from different cultures and brought them back to Silvermoon. I couldn't be tied down to a daughter and this was the only one I knew about. I had lain with races from around the world but in Silvermoon I was nothing but a magic-less high elf, a coward in battle, and if anyone knew that Perfectia was my daughter her people would look at her as a lesser. Her whole life her mother told me to stay away from her but now look at us. We are broken, defeated, the strongest of us have died in battle, our children and elders are slowly dying. Why do I care, I know in my head it's hopeless. But I look at her face, I can see her breathing, she looks like an angel, in my heart I know I have to save her, but how? Her little blue eyes open, "Lachance, where mother?" she asked softly.

"I don't know but I'm sure she made it someplace safe." I answer. If she were just little bit older I could tell her that she died bravely in battle, but I couldn't tell her that now. I could see the blue light in her eye's fading. She breathed fast like she was hyperventilating, "I need… to be… taken… to the… sunwell."

"We can't." I said, tears were started to form in my eyes as she was taking quick breathes, but they became less frequent. "I don't… want to…"

"No, please don't talk." I tried to claim her, she took a deep breath. I felt her slipping away, "No, Perfectia!"

I held on to her over my shoulder I was holding her dead weight, she wasn't breathing, tears from my eye were flowing like waterfalls. It dawned on me there was still magic in my veins, I laid her on the ground, pulled a knife from my pack, cut my wrist, and feed my blood into her mouth. The few drops of my red blood fell on the side of her lips and I saw her head tilt to the side a bit, "That's it Perfectia." I said.

I put my wrist right up to her mouth I could feel her starting to suck and saw her chest move up and down again. I laughed in relief, but her sucking was getting more aggressive. I tried to pull away but she held it down with both of her hands. Now it was getting downright painful I could feel the blood leave my face and I could feel a burning feeling in my chest, "That's enough!" I pulled with all my might and she rolled over to the side still breathing but unconscious. I was out of breath and my blood was dripping on the ground. This burning feeling I was getting. I hadn't been away from the sunwell for that long and it felt like I had been away for more than a month. I guessed I had just lost a lot of blood at a fast rate, she was still alive and I should recover.

I wrapped up my wound and picked her up. I felt I had less strength as I normally did but looking at that sleeping face made me want to pull through. When I usually felt like this I would have some herbal tea or pay for a magic potion from an alchemist, but I didn't have supplies to mull a tonic. I mean I had herbs, those at times were worth more than there weight in gold depending on where you sold them. I knew the Chapel of Light might have been able to heal her but I didn't know for sure, she wasn't infected with the Scourge virus or dying from wounds. She needed magic from the sunwell and I couldn't keep giving her my blood or I would end up dead too. I held on to her as we walked through the forest road, I never realized how bad it had gotten, the trees outside were dying. Mindless undead were littered around the wilderness killing whatever wild life inhabituated these forest, some of them looked sick and dying and were easy prey for slow moving undead. I was angry when I saw the damage to our beloved city, but this place made me sick. I had no strength or will to fight undead, I only wanted to save my daughter. I stayed on the road it was a long trip to the Chapel of Light and I was having doubts that both of us would make it there, but I was thankful for every movement Perfectia made to make herself comfortable as I carried her asleep.

"Hey, are you okay?" I heard a voice out in the distance.

"Help! We need to get to the Chapel of Light is there any way you could let us borrow a horse." I didn't know who or what I was yelling at.

"A High Elf in these parts?" The figure walked forward, a dwarf in shining white plate armor walked forward from the woods. "I thought all the high elves were gone."

"Our prince took what was left of our people but he told us to leave our sick and dying. I am no fighter so when I deserted, they didn't look for me very long." I explained.

"And what's that you got there?" He asked.

I got down on my knees and showed her to him. I felt of sigh of relief as the stout dwarf was able to hold her with ease. He looked at me, "She looks like an angel, is she your daughter?"

I closed my eyes, I had never said yes to that question before and only a few people have asked, "Yes." I finally said.

"Then I understand why you deserted," The dwarf said as he took her deeper into the woods.

"Hey where are you taking her, I need to take her to the Chapel of Light." I grabbed the dwarf by the shoulder.

"So you don't know," The dwarf looked back at me, moved his body away from my hand, and continued into the woods "The Chapel of Light was taken over by the undead but the Silver Hand has taken over a holy ground not too far from here, it's where I am stationed."

"Thank you, do they have alchemist there?" I asked.

"Unlikely, we just set up station there but it's your best bet in these parts, but don't worry I won't let this lass die without a fight."

"In that we agree dwarf" I said.

He stopped and looked back at me.

"Forgive me, what is your name?"

"Thane, Thane Korth'azz and commander of these small amount of Silver Hand paladins, we have Light's Hope, as we're calling it."

"Lachance, just Lachance am a librarian and magic-less high elf, but I think High Elf politics are a thing of the past. That is Perfectia daughter of Kel'Donas Dawnlight."

"Perfectia?!" Thane looked at me in surprise and looked at her face, "Odd name, but it suits her." He looked back at me, "You said you weren't a fighter how did you manage to get this far?"

I shrugged, "I guess when you're a librarian you know how to stay quite."

Thane laughed. He was right, it was only a few minutes until we arrived in the Chapel of Hope but it was only a handful of soldiers and a dusty looking church.

"I thought you said you had an alchemist?" I complained

"We do, ADAMS! GET YA WEE ARSE OVER HERE NOW!" Thane ordered.

"Coming sir." A female human in full plate armor soldier ran toward us, "Who's this?" She looked over at my daughter, "Oh never knew elf kids were so cute." She said with glee.

"You said you were an alchemist before right?" Thane demanded.

"I said I knew alchemy, alchemist implies that I do it for a living." Adams explained.

"But you at least know the basics." I asked

"Yeah of course. I have some supplies but what kind of potions are you trying to make?" She asked

"Something imbued with arcane power, something that will bring her life force back up." I explained.

"You mean like a mana potion, yeah sure, I can make that easy." She said with a smile.

"No, that would amply she's already been using magic, I need something that will raise her life force, her power so to speak."

"No, sorry, I can't help you." She shrugged.

"This little girls going to die if you don't figure something out, so you better get to work!" Thane ordered.

"Do you have a mortar and pestle any small bags or containers to keep remains" I asked.

"Don't you just put them in two glass bottles and shake them?" Clearly not know what I was talking about.

"I think I realize why humans don't live very long." I directed toward Thane. He laughed, "Do you have a bowl and something to grind with?" I continued.

"Sure." She answered.

"Can you boil me some hot water?" I asked

"Of course." She nodded.

"Thane I've never really been to hands on but I think I'm going to have to do this by myself." I explained to him.

"No, she's going to help you in whatever way she can, SHE MIGHT ACTUALLY LEARN SOMETHING!" Thane yelled.

Adams shrugged, "Well were going to need herbs, everybody knows that."

"Trust me I got that, Thane can you find a place to set my daughter down maybe some place soft?" I directed toward him.

"Sure, we have some animal furs she can lay on. " Thane carried me to the Chapel.

"And do you have anything to eat? I lost a lot of blood on the way over here." I explained.

Thane looked back at me, "Yeah I was about to ask you about that, you don't look very good. Our cook should have chow cooked in the next hour or so, will she eat stew."

"Actually that's perfect Perfectia's never eaten solid foods before." I explained.

Thane laughed, "Wow, well that explains a lot. Well will need to get her started on that. Put some meat on those bones."

I was able to wake Perfectia up with some Swift Thistle Tea but she still looked out of it, her eyes didn't grow as the deep blue they uses to. Adams looked at her like she was a newborn puppy, I had to stop her from petting her head as if she were a dog. She ate with the other soldiers and Adams wasn't the only one enchanted by my daughter's beauty, innocence, and frailty. Everyone could see how sick she was but I think Perfectia liked the attention; she did smile quite a bit. They helped her put bowls of broth on her month and she drank every mana potion Adams had in her pack. After the meal Perfectia laid down on the animal furs that were laid out for her and Adams put another one over her and cast a healing spell over her. I watched the other soldiers on their patrols, I never knew humans were so good at fighting, they had a fierceness, strength, and discipline to them I rarely saw in Silvermoon. "There not usually like that, you know." I heard Adams say.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"We've all lost people we loved, sons, daughters, fathers, mothers. I lost my husband and two kids, you know I thought they would be safer near Lorderon but they weren't, I realized I didn't want to live in grief. I wanted to go down fighting." Adams explained.

"I'm sorry for you loss. I've never really felt attached to anyone; I always feared the pain you're going through right now."

She stopped her healing spell and looked over at me, "Do you feel attached to her?"

I took a deep breath, "If I could give my life so she could live, I would. Does that make me attached to her?"

She nodded, "Yeah it does, and because of what I went through I never want to see it happen to anyone else. It gives me strength and I think everyone outside feels the same way, but what happened Lachance?"

I took a deep breath, "Arthas is what happen, from the moment he stepped into our woods he claimed that the only thing he wanted to do was to destroy our sunwell and if we just opened the door for him none of us would be killed." I recalled the memory in pain. "I believed it, I am a magic-less High Elf so I don't need to be around the sunwell that much, but our children, our elders. They are dying; some of them are already dead. So they fought, I watched and pleaded to them not to take up arms, I'm a coward. Kel'Donas her mother, she fought, I knew Perfectia was my daughter and she just handed her to me and told me to take her someplace safe. Then I said she's never eaten solid foods before. Well, I was only half telling the truth, she's never eaten or drunken anything at all, everything that this body is made of came from that sunwell. Now I understand why they fought and why they died" I hit the back of my head in the back of the wall, "By the Light I was so stupid, I should have died in those woods."

Adams looked down on her sleeping, she was still so peaceful, "If you hadn't done what you had done Perfectia would be died knowing that no one was fighting this hard to save her life. No Lachance." Tears were already falling from her face, "When the Scourge came to Lorderon I just ran the other way, at least you saved one of your children. I never stop thinking if I was a half as brave as you could I have at least saved one of them?" She cried on my shoulder for a few minutes and her tears were returned with mine. We heard the Silver Hand patrol killing the incoming undead but it was like a sweet song that some them were getting what's due, even if it's was just a little bit. She finally asked me "There must be some way we can save her."

"I don't know, maybe. She nearly died a few moments ago." I tried to regain my composer, "Prince Kel'Thus renamed our people Blood Elves, and it seems a fitting name for what I just had to do to save her." I took off my bandage and showed her my wrist, "I let her drink some of my blood and she got better, and it nearly killed me, but I would give it all if it would just let her live a normal life."

Adams half smiled, "How much did she drink?"

I shook my head, "I don't know, enough to make me feel weak."

She pulled out her sword and grabbed my hand, "That's it!"

She re-opened the wound, "Ouch, what are you doing?" I complained.

"Were going to mix your blood with the mana potions, a smaller amount everyday it should buy her some time until we find a cure, or we might be able to wean her off the sunwell's magic completely." She explained.

She grabbed a bowl and put my blood into it and then poured it in a larger vial. This plan seemed a bit dangerous on both of our parts but I liked it. I gave Perfectia enchanted potions that weren't made from my blood and they gave Perfectia eye's that bright glow again for about an hour or two but most of the time she sat in her many collection of animal furs some of the other soldiers brought back. I really did feel like the area we were staying at was indeed holy ground. I hadn't felt a strong burning pain to be near the sunwell again but I didn't know if Perfectia was feeling the same way. There was no way to find out if Perfectia was like her mother and was strong with the ways of the arcane or was she a magic-less High Elf like her dad, but while she was in bed she made magic movements with her hands out of boredom. I just hoped Adams was right, I didn't care if she had magic or not, I just wanted her to at least be able to walk without falling over from weakness. It took some time but Perfectia started eating solid foods and this Chapel was indeed living up to its name. I was feeling that I did have some hope coming to this place and then one day Perfectia just walked outside and cast a healing spell on a dying animal.

I picked her up and grabbed her I looked into her eyes and they weren't blue at all, they were orange. "How did you that?!" I asked overjoyed.

"Maria and Thane do that to me all the time; it's not as hard as I though." Perfectia explained.

"Do you know what this means; it means we can go find our people, we came finally join with our Prince and you can meet all the other Blood Elves." I explained

"Lachance were not Blood Elves were High Elves, I don't want to leave this place and your eye's they turned orange." There were no mirrors here so I had never noticed.

I looked over at Thane and the rest of the soldiers there were a lot of them now, not just the handful Thane brought over that first night I came here. They were wearing different uniforms as well, gray with a yellow sun tabard. "What's with the sun picture?" I asked.

Thane looked at it and said, "We're calling ourselves The Argent Dawn now."

"Can I join, can we join? Please." I asked

Thane smiled, "It's not going to be easy but I think you both have heart, I'll send word that we will have some worthy recruits. We should be able to bring a carriage tomorrow."

"Thank you Thane, thank you so much, we owe you so much. And Perfectia" I looked over at her, "I'm your father."

She ran over and hugged me, "I knew it! I've always knew it, mother said it you weren't but I knew it was you." I spin her around the in joy as the other members of the Argent Dawn clapped.

Over the weeks I grew closer to Maria Adams, she laid next to me with Perfectia in the chapel, in the middle of the night Perfectia woke me up, "Daddy do you feel that?"

I woke up to her big glowing orange eye's, "No Perfectia, go back to sleep we have a big day tomorrow, get some rest."

She was still awake I could tell her eyes were still open even though her head was turned around. The light from her eye's lighted up parts of the chapel. "Daddy I think it's the sunwell they must have fixed it, can't you feel that."

"No honey, you don't just fix sunwells, we don't need its magic anymore, were fine." I said I checked her one more time her eyes were closed so I went back to sleep.

But I did feel something, something strong, something bright, and beautiful. I felt a pain in my chest I hadn't felt in a long time since I got here. I stood up and Perfectia wasn't by my side. "Perfectia ?!" I looked around questionable scared out of my mind. "Perfectia?!." I yelled out louder.

I awoke Maria she stood up startled, "Perfectia!?" she screamed."Lachance where is she?"

I looked back at her, "I know where she's going."

"Well let me get suited up." She said. I ran outside and shouted her name off the top of my lungs; I hoped to the Light she could hear me. Maria put on her plate armor faster than I had ever seen her before and she armed herself with a sword and shield. She handed me some leather armor, she knew it was all I could afford to wear. "You're not going to last five seconds out there without armor I'll go after her."

"What going on, where your daughter?" Thane asked. I tried to put on the armor as fast as I could. "I don't know how to get there but I know where she's going."

"Well where?" He demanded.

I pointed north, "That way, maybe somewhere over that mountain."

Thane shook his head, "Lachance no, that's… that's…"

"That's WHAT?!" I shouted as I put on the last piece of armor.

The dwarf looked down, "Nothing, let's just go there and bring her back. Take these with you, you're not much use to me unarmed" he slapped two daggers in my chest. Pulled out his heavy hammer and ran. He pointed at someone, "YOUR IN CHARGE WHILE I'M GONE!"

I ran as fast as I could, out running Thane and reaching Maria soon. I saw Maria fighting nearby Scourge. I stabbed them in the back they went down like stacked boxes of wood. "Thanks." She said.

Thane came to where we were huffing and breathing, "Lachance… You're faster than you look elf."

I could feel the burning in my chest again I looked off into the distance and I saw a city in flames, "It's coming from there, that where she going."

I started to run away but Thane grabbed me by my armor, "Lachance that's Stratholme some of the most dangerous Scourge are in there. A little girl is not going to make ten seconds over there."

"I won't give up on her dwarf." I moved my body away from him, Maria just nodded at him. She knew that even if he were to order her to stay she wouldn't listen. I heard her run behind me.

"WELL WAIT UP FOR ME; YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO MAKE IT THERE IF YOU'RE BOTH DEAD!" He yelled.

We slowed down and made sure we were at the dwarfs pace, but he wasn't kidding the Scourge were drawn to that city they didn't focus much attention on us. Thane was able to move through the armies of undead like a spinning top killing large numbers of undead with his heavy hammer. We would have never gotten that far if we hadn't waited up for him. Once he started fighting we just killed the ones that made it behind him. But he just plowed thought every single undead regardless of his or their size. He stopped one or twice to catch his breath but we were able to notice the large flashes of light coming from Stratholme. As we came closer we saw each Scourge go into the city gates, followed with flashes of yellow lights, then followed by rains of ash. We were tired and there were so many of them but they did care about us, they were out running us moving toward that city. "That's what Perfectia must have been feeling." I claimed.

I felt it too, we still had about half a mile before we got to Stratholme but the Scourge numbers were dying down dramatically and then they were completely gone. "That'll teach em." Thane bragged out of breath.

"None of these Scourge attacked us didn't you notice that?" I stated.

"You're right, I feared the worst, but I think your daughter might be fine." Maria said.

"Woooo, Good, that was fun, but can we start walking now." Thane complained. I put both of my daggers behind my back, "Yeah, we have to thank who ever cleared out all these Scourge." I said.

We walked on the road and as I looked into the wilderness there wasn't a single undead. I sighed with some relief, if Perfectia was here we were going to find her alive and well. Oh, but the beating that girl would get, I can't believe she would just go off into the forest like that. But a man in red on horseback blazed by us in the opposite direction, "What's he doing here?" Thane asked.

I watched him ride away, "You know him?" I asked

He looked up at me, "Yeah that's Renavlt Mograine, Alexandros's son."

"Do you think he cleared out all these Scourge?" I asked.

Thane shrugged, "Unlikely but I guess it's not impossible. Something doesn't feel right."

I agreed with him, whatever strong feeling of light that drew me to this place was now completely gone. Thane pulled out his weapon from his back and we all did the same. And we walked to Stratholme, I felt the source of my chest pains but it was a completely different energy from before I could feel that it was extremely powerful, maybe even stronger then the Sunwell, but it was an energy I didn't like. I heard faint whispers, it said, "Betrayed… By… My… Order…"

Thane stopped, "Did you guys hear that?"

I thought I was just imaging it but if he heard it too. I nodded, I placed my finger on my lip and Thane and Maria tried to move quietly despite their heavy armor clanking.

When we came to the bridge we found Perfectia but she was protecting her face like there was something that had threaten her. Her eyes were bright glowing green and she had symbols all over her face and body that glowed as well. But there was no Scourge, no undead, just a large gray and orange sword with green glowing runes, and a skull design that seem to float in midair impaled into a human man in red plate armor. "Perfectia." We all whispered.

She looked over at us, "No don't come any closer!" she screamed.

"Kill… Them… All…" We all heard it again. Thane stepped out first hammer at the ready but looked around for some incoming enemy the giant green glowing sword that was just inside of that man flew in midair and stabbed right through Thane, as his body fell to the floor black mist surrounded the sword and formed into a human man. Alexandro's Mograine pulled his sword out of Thane's body and was looking at both of us with his glowing green eyes.

"MONSTER!" Maria sliced at him with her sword but it was like she was slicing at smoke, the sword then cut her head clean off. I knew how to stay hidden but seeing my lovers head fall out made a shout of dread go through me. The figure responded to my scream and formed into a man once again.

"NO! " Perfectia grabbed the sword out from the figure and was now he was looking at my daughter. I threw and my dagger at his face but it had the same effect as Marias sword. "NO, you can't have him!" She continued to pull. I felt the energy change back into its former yellow energy we had both felt before. The skull changed into a beautiful yellow crystal for a second and changed back. Perfectia's now green eyes and runes on her body were glowing brighter than the sun and she screamed in pain as she tried to pull the sword away from the figure. "I won't let you kill my daddy! I'm not going to kill for you, I'm not going to kill anyone, just leave him alone!"

Perfectia screamed, I felt that she would explode from all the energy flowing through her body. I grabbed her away from the sword and I felt the corrupted energy she was carrying, it burned like the deepest fires of the Twisting Nether but I held on to her knowing that she might of been holding on to it for longer. The figured appeared again holding the sword corrupted with its energy once again, "LEAVE US ALONE SPIRIT!" I screamed as I held on to Perfectia taking in more of her energy.

The figure just looked at us, disappeared, and the sword dropped on the cobblestone floor, "Leave this place blood elf, you will only find an early death in these lands." We heard a voice say, I looked into her now green eyes and she nodded in approval. I picked her up but she shook her head and wanted to be put down. I held her hand and we walked away from these cursed lands, we heard one more whisper from the corrupted sword, "I… was… once… called…. Ashbringer."


	5. Chapter 5 Star Master

I see thee all around the pleas

The stories they tell and it comes me

An yes you guess this story will rhyme

Ever changing life, but all but blind

The peril I cause the lives I take.

But a rewritten history lies in wake.

Allow me a monument to welcome thee

Star Master's my name and a druid I be.

Long along when I took my first breath

There was no sound for I was def.

But that's then I learned to change this form

That's when the music first hit its cord

A lion, a tiger, and bear, oh my.

And nothing was better when I learned to fly

An now that the music could now be heard

I begin to speak to all the birds.

Worms, leaves, berries, seeds

Nice but couldn't plea my greed

Hunger, pain, torment, lust

Tauren I was and a tauren I must.

A tauren with no sound and could only see.

It may not for you, but it is for me.

I never actually knew my name.

So Star is what I began to claim.

Starmaster to all the kind Night Elves

And they all had names for themselves.

But I truly missed my time with the birds

I had no voice and nothing could be heard

Birds can't speak then only know song

And that's then this rhyming came along.

But Eastern Kingdoms were of druid desire

So my first mission began was very dire.

The forest was dying and I watched with doubt

For surely the forest would die if left without

I watched along all the undead, how filled they were with hate.

But among I saw very few, few could control their fate

Arthas controlled them all with a sword filled with runes

But was one along I did see, among his whole platoon

He spoke against his foul dread master

And it wasn't a total complete disaster.

A caster, blaster, of ice and fire

And his master couldn't help admire

I knew his kind he was a mage

An his master would not dare engage.

I made my report to my comrades

But as I spoke it began to go bad

They thought it that this was a silly jest

A bluff or a misinterpretation at best

I told them, " Why would I lie?

There is no need, why even try?"

But it seemed my rhyming didn't seem to please.

My druid friends could only see disease.

But I could feel something but they did not

There reports seemed plan a mundane lot

But I begin to think that they were right

No good could come, only blight.

I knew this forest could not go without a fight.

So the mage I watched, never out of sight.

He rode and killed so many High elves

But few were only trying to defend themselves.

But I could only watch and nothing more

My heart grew heavy like it had before

When I roamed the world and howled with pain

This sound of this bastard Arthas was everything but humane

A senseless slaughter, the terrible smell

But they stayed and fought when it befell.

But many deaths there, but all the same,

And with their death's, more undead came.

It was more than that the sound and screams that continued to break through the wood.

I try to forget the sounds of pain where nature and elves once stood.

So twisted, tortured they became

So I ran away to escape this pain.

I was glad I was deaf and also thankful in some sort of degree

I needed only a mouth to scream and tearful eye's to see.

I cried and cursed my pain in verse of what I had to tell.

But some of them had stayed told me of the High Elves precious sunwell.

Friends were right, it all seemed true

The undead must fall, there virtues few

Druids did not engage for fear of what they would become

But I was everything but afraid at least not much like some.

I couldn't accept my fate this weak and feeble bird home.

So I took the form of a lion that was free to rage and roam.

When I came upon Arthas and his army was not so widespread.

But would follow for a little more and then rip him into sheds.

There were five of them at least three were horseback

The other two I wasn't sure I was following there foot tracks.

I flew and flew and for a while I knew that they would not just slumber.

But I knew I couldn't just take them out one at a time for I was greatly outnumbered.

I saw the mage I saw before how filled he was with joy

I didn't know then they would stop but he would be the first I would destroy.

Whey came upon a burning city where the undead had made their claim

I came upon him very slowly to not invoke his flame.

I wanted him to be the first to fill Arthas mind full of fear

I wanted him to think that he would be next or maybe some of his peers

They walked through the city and then came upon a single house.

The mage was greeted by a beautiful human as if he was his spouse.

I turned my head to the side and I couldn't believe my eyes

How this woman could not know, why see him as a prize?

He killed her and asked his master to bring back her from the dead

But said he wouldn't do it that he was completely misled.

But there she rouses with eyes of glow, yellow and bright as the sun

Despite Arthas's plans of betray love and hope had won.

Love I felt in my heart and it seemed so did Arthas

He fell to the ground held his heart while lovers shared first kiss

I couldn't kill, I couldn't run, I could only see the view

Arthas wasn't like those two, he completely ran them through.

I looked on the ground and saw that I had just killed some of the grass

It was stone an impenetrable fortress that this grass had once just pass

I looked around and saw burning and all of roaming undead.

But this place were undead did actually lived nature hadn't completely fled.

The grass or weed I had stomped should glow back strong in time

The love in Arthas's heart would grow too killing him would still be a crime.

The woman woke up with eyes of blue seeming to survive stronger than before

The four of seem scared; that they should, they had a lot to answer for.

One of them laughed or so it seemed, until she started dragging

I saw sword in her chest, it seemed to stop her bragging

Arthas saw that this woman was now part of his undead team

But I felt there was something more she wouldn't be part of his scheme.

They rode away and she looked back at him I could tell there was pain in her heart

I changed into a bird and whispered in her ear, "You will not be forever apart."

So I kept a close eye on that undead I could see that he was still alive.

I placed him in the house he came where he and his love once thrived

I took my report to my friends and I knew they wouldn't believe

But one among that I knew he knew that I would not deceive

Hamuul Runetotem heard my story entertained and not disgusted

A story of two lovers still, he said, "Maybe they can be trusted."

But I watch and watch for many days seeing to the trees.

The birds had taught me quite a bit, I did find most of my needs.

Every undead I saw lifeless I stomped into the ground.

And then the tree's begin to speak, faint but some made sounds

They said very softly that I must go, the forest needs to bleed

But there were two others that I can help, and must see to their needs.

They guided me to what seemed like the last two living high elves

They needed me to take to them their clan were there people now might dwell.

Perfectia and Lachance they said their names while I was in the form of a bear

Lachance was scared but the young one not, she seem completely aware.


	6. Chapter 6 Ratchettee

Hey, is this thing on?

What do you mean it's not recording?

No I'm not going to write my life story down, the only thing I'm writing is my payment contract. Do you know how long that would take?

Oh, you're going to write it down, I'm I paying you for this?

You're going to do it for free, sheesh, well I'm getting a cut if my story makes it big, maybe people could finally see the greatness of Ratchettee I'll try not to bend the truth to much.

Wait, did you just write that down?

Well stop!

Okay, throw away everything I've said so far.

I know I'm not paying you.

What kind of idiot going to wanna read this?

You just wrote that down too didn't you?

Okay let just get this back on track my name is Ratchettee to my nana or Ratchet from my friends, yeah like the town. An as you might of guessed I'm a goblin, HEY ARE THERE ANY VISUAL AIDS IN THIS THING?!

What do you mean you don't know, aren't you the author?

I'm going be on the front cover of the book right?

I thought this book was about me?

You mean there are others?

Yeah but I didn't meet up with those guys until way later, I mean a lot of stuff happened before I met with Jaundace and his boys, boy were those guys some characters.

Fine jeez, I'll try to speak more visually but I'm not making any promises, now where was I. Oh right, I'm a goblin, I have green skin, my hair is white, I'm 22, and nice people say I'm a rogue and not so nice will call me a thief. But I'm nether, what I really am is a cook and maybe an aspiring chef. While most of my kin think technology is the best way to profit. I know that the best smelling herbs and spices and freshest ingredients is the best way to get a person to open there gold purse. I remember when I was just a kid goblin I tasted my first 5 star meal I knew that this was how I was going to take a bite out of the world. An even as a kid if I made something that tasted terrible but at least looked good I would sit and watch them choke that foul meal down without complaint.

Okay there something you should know about goblin breeding. Goblins are made kind how you imagine, I mean just because were born green that doesn't mean were not mammals, I've heard of some cross breeding with orcs and humans, not gnomes though. Ew, I'll give you a second to get that thought out of your head.

Nana's do the hazardous and life threating job of taking care of goblin babies, you see the first second when a goblin is born there as wild and feral and as a cat with rabies, so we throw them in a dark hole in the ground and lock them up during the day, try to block out all light, and throw food down there so they can eat, and yes if you do fall into this hole they will try to eat you, even if you're a goblin, and even if you're the mother. But they won't eat each other, I always wondered about that, well not all of us anyways. I heard of some sick goblin tribes wouldn't feed the baby goblins and they would actually be forced to eat each other. At night we put a latter down in the hole with a fire going. The baby goblins climb up the latter and they stare into the fire until the morning. If the goblin is still feral he will go back into his hole where he or she came from, if he or she is not he or she might try to go outside and look at the sun. That's where nana's come in, they start breast feeding for a few weeks, introducing tools and toys, but some of them are still feral and a nana needs to be able defend herself if a feral goblin tries to attack her with some of the tools she had gave to him or her to try to expand his or her mind. But I think I must have crawled into a feeding larder because I think I just wanted to eat good food or food that tasted or smelled good. Maybe there was a restaurant not too far from where I was raised because me being a goblin I'm not too interested in building or tinkering with hazardous explosives like my kin. Not that cooking doesn't pose its dangers, I mean it does. I mean I remember this one time this human got half his body covered in burning olive oil, I mean boy was that funny. I mean you know what they say, "You can't take the heat get out of the kitchen."

But I think working in a kitchen made me value something a little bit more than money. I cook, I create and I'm incredibly excited by what I do, and I feel I could do so something much more and while my kin might be tinkering with dangerous mechanics, nearly losing limbs I was usually making something that would make cooking things a little faster. Okay, maybe I cut a few corners, and let say maybe on some level I was responsible for that hot oil spill, but I'm not one to cry over spilled milk, I'm too busy looking for the next cow.

So I was raised near the most southern parts of the Eastern Kingdoms in the jungles of Stranglethorn Vale by the Venture Company and I cooked a lot of raptor eggs. At least that what I got started with, we hunted a lot of raptors. There meat was pretty good at the time but I look back on it now and to this day I would think it was a somewhat tough meat to chew. I had a lot of work beating this meat with hammers and when a high class customer came into my kitchen to eat I would prepare a more tender raptor , so I got kind of good at beating meat…

Shut up, I can see you laughing over there!

…with hammers and cutting things with knifes. A lot of meat is best when you cooked it within the hour you killed it, not raptor meat though. Eggs are good though, I enjoy those even to this day. So my reputation as a cook got really bad but the chefs I worked under reputations got really good. I mean even though I invented new tools to make cooking faster when I worked under a chef they got all the credit, but if they exploded or malfunctioned yeah, just blame it on the reckless kid goblin, but after you washed soot out of your eyes. we discovered something wonderful, that fire where the horses uses to be, just turned into something that smelled delicious.

Yeah, I got fired from the kitchen and what was worst is that chef moved to Booty Bay and made a fortune off my raptor and egg recipes and since the kitchen had no good cooks or chefs they tore the kitchen down. Some of my goblin brothers and sisters were impressed by my inventions and asked me if I could work making wood shredders, but they knew I hated working on those machines. But I worked half hardly and made most of my meals on a camp fire. I remember on my tenth birthday a bunch of my co-workers pitched in and got me a big stewing pot, at least that's what they said, I had seen those stewing pots at nearby troll tribes that littered the jungles, they most likely stole it, but they had a whole bunch of ingredients that I had never seen before. Fish, flowers, herbs, meat, craw-fish not many vegetables or mushrooms though, all in all there wasn't a lot of food that was native to Stranglethorn Vale but it all smelled really good. I wished that I had a whole kitchen but this pot was twice as tall as a fully grown goblin I asked my brothers, "Where did you get all this stuff?"

They pointed at these giant fat tan creatures with horns on their heads, I had never seen one of them before in my young life but they were Ogres, the Venture Company had just started employing them. So I prepared the best meal I've ever made and the smell brought everyone to the pot but I wanted those cheating backstabbing humans away from my food, I wasn't sure about the ogres though, they seemed alright. So I told my kin this story I'm telling you right now and they told me, "Ratchet, you're not like us, and I know you don't like how greedy we may come out to be, but we all had to learn this lesson the hard way. Even the labors of this company have been griped out of our pay and we have starved because some of us tried to have a kind and care free attitude towards life. "

I asked my kin why people take advantage of us. They said, "Look at us, were short, they have to look down on us like we were children, they think it's cute when we try to take the profit that is rightfully ours and while gnomes might be fine with that we don't. We take knifes to their Achilles tendon bring them down to our level and say, 'Listen if you don't pay me I'll kill you!' We goblins have got to stick together in hard times and make them see the downfall for underestimating us."

I'll tell you this now because if you talk to any goblin they will tell you a time they were cheated out of there profit, but it's still relieving to cook and serve food for my brothers of the workplace. I fed the ogres and boy could they eat, I talked to some of them and they weren't that bright and were downright loud. I asked them where did you get this food and he just pointed up. I asked, "You got them from the sky?"

The ogre shook his head, "North! You's small for goblin, but cook good."

He tried to pat me on the head, I tried to move his huge hand off but he was so massive I couldn't stop him from petting me like a dog. I bit his hand and grabbed it almost like I was feral again. The claws I had as infant hadn't completely gone so when he pulled away I dug into his flesh with them. The ogre screamed out in pain as I crawled around his body like a lizard making strange tongue cries, I remember everything going red and then black. When I woke up I was locked in a dark room and I yelled, "Hey let me out, I'm sorry!"

My nana opened the door in full plate armor and armed with a shield and hammer, "You know I thought with you being ten now that I wouldn't have to worry about this happening again. You messed up that Ogre pretty bad you know."

The ogre I messed up was waiting for me, he had scratches and bruises on most of the parts of his body I remembered that I did have my hammer in my pocket; it was gone when I was locked up. There was two other ogres that were with him, the one I messed pointed at me, "Dats him there."

The two ogres looked at him and then me and broke into laugher, "Rocko got beat by that, he small even for a goblin!"

Rocko pulled a club from his back, "Me smash you dis time." He said.

Nana banged her club against her shield and got the ogres attention, they stopped laughing, "Goblins are dangerous, especially when their kids and the babies are downright deadly."

Rocko laughed, "Mommy goblin thinks she can fight, me smash you too. Boys we's make goblin stew tonight!"

Nana smiled and took a deep breath, "Well if violence is the only thing you understand."

I had seen her catch the fastness feral goblins and throw them in their holes and even kill a few, but I never saw her fight an enemy that was four times her size. In a flash Nana zoomed behind the ogres' legs and smashed her hammer so hard into the back of the ogres' knee caps that he went airborne and smashed into the ground, but she didn't quit, she smashed her hammer into the ogres head fracturing his skull. I saw her smile and looked at the other two, the second ogre smashed his hammer at her and she moved to the side ever so slightly. She could have completely dodged it but she moved a few inches away, "CLEAR!" she yelled

She shocked the second by touching his metal hammer and he fell to the ground shaking, he wasn't breathing. Nana had a smile from ear to ear as she approached Rocko, "Nana don't!" I yelled

She stopped but she kept her eye's on Rocko, "Why not, they came here to kill you and my kids."

"Me no's wants to kill you, just him. Me not understand why momma can fight better than all other goblins." Rocko pleaded.

Nana put her hammer and shield away, "I'm not a momma I'm a nanny, I deliver the babies and I care for them. I told you kid and baby goblins are dangerous."

Rocko just looked and her, "Me's not understand nanny, babies not dangerous, babies cute and cuddly."

Nana took something from a cage, it was my pet rabbit, I was planning on eating him but I warmed up to him and kept him as a pet. "Nana what are you doing with Jeff?"

Nana held him upside down by his legs and Jeff screamed a disturbing yell of pain, "I'm teaching you both a lesson Ratchettee."

I rushed toward her to try save my rabbit but she wasn't just fast, she was strong too, she grabbed me by my face with her free hand, took me to the ground, and smashed her metal boot on my chest. I flayed and scratched at her armor but she just looked down at me holding my rabbit. I flayed I made the same tongue roars I made before; I felt everything go red again. I saw her look at the Rocko, I could feel the rage building again, and I started pushing with my hips to get her off me, "DON'T YOU EVEN THINK ABOUT GOING FERAL AGAIN RATCHETTEE OR THIS TIME I WILL KILL YOU!"

"You kill you son?" Rocko questioned.

I felt the rage leave me, I had to survive and I cried, "You can't feed Jeff to those monsters!"

She stomped on my chest again, "Those monsters are your people Ratchettee, you were like that and so was I. If this ogre doesn't know the truth about our people he will attack again with more of his friends and if you don't learn to control your rage things like this are going to keep happening." She pointed at my rabbit; he was still screaming trying to lift himself up. "For worst, you'll be dead. I've raised you for ten years now Ratchettee but I rather see you dead then as mindless giblin."

She kicked me away and opened the door to the goblin baby holes. It was too small for Rocko to get through but he got down to her level and watched through the bars "Rocko could you grab Ratchettee and make sure he doesn't go anywhere, don't worry, he won't go feral again."

He grabbed me by my shirt and held on to my arm, "I got him." Rocko said.

I didn't watch but I heard my rabbit make one last cry and she threw him down into the hole. Then I heard them, those same high pitched tongues roars they had always made, but this time it was with my screaming rabbit. I didn't know what they were doing to him he must have been screaming for about a long 30 seconds. Rocko let me go to hold on to his ears and I ran out the door I rushed over to where my birthday present was and knocked it over and beat it with my bare hands, I couldn't understand why was I alive, why was I born a monster, why couldn't I just cook food and make people happy. I never wanted to be an animal or a greedy taskmaster that made people's lives miscible, so why was I only given these two options.

Well Rocko saw me crying, he didn't say anything at first, just walked around and whispered things in other ogres ears. I decided to sleep outside, it was still warm in my pot and if trolls tried to kidnap me I could save them the trouble of trying to put me in a pot to cook me. But when I woke up I was in my bed and Nana was looking over me, "What do you want?" I asked her.

She was asleep, but she was sleeping sitting down, "Someone would like to say something to you. You can come in now!"

Rocko came through the door, "Ratchettee me sorry about bunny. Me also sorry me try to smash you. Be friends?"

I got up, "You don't wanna be my friend Rocko, my people are nothing but mindless animals or greedy bastards. We can never be anything else." I looked over at Nana when I said that.

Rocko smashed the side of door, "NO! RATCHETTEE NOT GREEDY, RATCHETTEE NOT ANIMAL, RATCHETTEE NICE! Ratchettee cry when nanny kill bunny, Ratchettee has birthday party and gets no gifts, no gold, Ratchettee only gets food and stolen troll pot and Ratchettee shares with all goblins and even stranger ogres and me's ruin it for you. Me so sorry Ratchettee. Please be friends, me make sure no one hurt you."

I smiled I looked over at Nana and she just nodded her head and smiled, "Okay I forgive you, and sure we could be friends, but I don't need a body guard and don't call me Ratchettee anymore, it's just Ratchet, just tell me where did you get all that food?"

Rocko breathed in hard, "Me tells you, we's gets it from North."

"Like how far north like Stormwind or Ironforge, or maybe Lordaeron?" Nana asked.

Rocko shook his hands and his head, "No, not far north just North."

"So it's only a few miles away north, can we walk there?" I asked now.

Rocko held on to his head, "No, North is place, North is name, North end."

"You mean Northrend. You got the food from Northrend?" Nana finally had it.

"Northrend? Are you sure it's not North End that name makes more since." I added

"I'm sure, the Venture was thinking about expanding there but right now it's crawling with undead, they might have picked up these ogres there." Nana explained, "Rocko are you from North End?"

"No, me just work as mercenary, but me no good fighting, me just good at smashing. Undead very scary." Rocko explained

"It's been a growing problem in Lordaeron, which is why we weaponized the wood cutters but if there heading toward Northrend I guess we don't have much to worry about." Nana explained

So me and Rocko became friends, helped me fix wood cutters and carried around the big metal pot then I wanted to cook someplace else. Engineering school didn't really interest me all that much but I did learn a little about volatile fuels, and since I had a whole bunch of herbs I used for cooking, alchemy came really easy to me. At the very least I could make potions that tasted really good, but I wanted to open another kitchen, this is when I started charging people for my food and potions. Some of my kin were proud of me at first. I was finally handling gold and hoarding it like a goblin should, but some people didn't like it and started borrowing or stealing. I had to convince Rocko to collect, he was a teddy bear though, but he could at least look menacing and he could break stuff. I didn't like living like that though, Rocko had bruises from time to time. He told me a lot, about the orc invasion and the human's war, about what happened in Outland. He was one of the smartest ogres I've ever met, he just talked funny. When I tried to correct his speaking by saying "I" instead of "Me" or "I have" not "Me gots" he explained that is was his accent. That ogre writing had over 2000 hieroglyphic letters but as more cities were destroyed and clans fled to the wilds learning to speak with a tablets and hammers and nails that couldn't be taught, But Rocko knew how to write enough hieroglyphic letters to send messages to Kalimdor. He never ever wrote on paper once though. Said it was meaningless to write on something that could be destroyed to easily. He said then the orcs drank the demon blood the first thing they destroyed was the books, but the tablets and walls filled with hieroglyphics was how he learned to read. He taught me how to read and write in common and speak and write orcish, but those hieroglyphics, the ogre language in general. Rocko was endangered species, he was way smarter then I gave him credit for. Wasn't big on math though, he could add and subtract and multiply and divide with some practice but building, engineering, you have to know a lot more. But he did show me something, something we both came up with.

We were talking one day and he told me, "What's yous want in life, yous not happy here?"

I told him, "Once I saved up enough money I'll build a kitchen here and import goods from Northrend maybe all around the world."

"For gold?" Rocko asked

"Of course, you have to have gold if you want to do things, kitchens don't play for themselves you know." I explained.

"Ratchet has lots of gold, Rocko also has lot of gold, but yous food tasting bad, does Ratchet care. You use same corn oil for two weeks." Rocko complained.

"Someone needs to watch out for the gold, once we get more shipments I'll be able to spend it for food and kitchen equipment. But since we have to work on woodcutters to pay for the Ventures protection, I don't have time to be looking for ingredients right now. I can only feed the people willing to pay." I said it but it hurt to hear the words come out.

"And you let them steal?" Rocko stated.

"I let MY people borrow MY money Rocko with interest! You collect, it's why I feed you for free!"

Rocko crossed with arms, "You hate yous people because they greedy, Ratchet. I no like yous food and yous people not like yous food, they only eat cause they starving. I let some eat for free and even give yous gold for free." He confessed.

"Why would you do that?! IS THERE SOMETHING FUNNY ABOUT STEALING PROFIT!" He wasn't laughing but I hoped it was joke. "Please tell me you joking."

Rocko just stood there arms crossed and kept from looking in my eyes.

"You're fired, Rocko. There are pretty of ogres working here I don't need you!" I look back on that time with a lot of regret.

Rocko took the pot of two week old molding corn oil and spilled it on the ground, "Then you no need this!" Rocko took the club off his back and smashed the metal and stone pot so hard it made a spark that fell into the oil. The oil took blaze and a river of burning oil went towards the work areas. That oil burned for a long time and the fire burned a whole weeks' worth of wood from shredding. Me and Rocko weren't on best terms, I couldn't cook at all which made me really depressed and I didn't have Rocko to help with the wood shredders which was also depressing. The Venture Company found out it was us or so I thought, and the foreman asked us to explain why we were on bad terms.

I exclaimed to the foreman, "It was Rocko fault, he caused the fire when he spilled corn oil and broke my cooking pot, and it caused a spark and burned all the wood and some of the jungle."

The foremen laughed and said, "I was asking why you guys were at one time thick as thieves and now you won't even look at each other, but thanks for that. We wrote it off as a fossil fuel leak that went bad, not the first time it's happened."

So I confessed nothing "So we can forget what I just said right? I mean it's Rocko's fault, You know what they say, 'The bigger they are, the harder they avoid work' " I claimed.

"Nope, you're going to pay for this." The foreman said with a laugh. "But I am wondering about the oil you were using, it burned for a long time. Could you make more?"

"Dat oil was three week old. Me glad it went up in smoke, it's nearly poisoning us." Rocko said still angry at me.

"You both are in trouble, "The foreman explained, "Don't think I haven't heard about your bad cooking Ratchettee and your property damage Rocko. We just wrote it off as goblin acting like a goblin."

"Hear dat Ratchet, yous everything yous said you hate, a greedy destroyer of things." Rocko teased

I looked at the foremen like I was hoping he would do something after hearing something that, I was his people and he was mocking us.

"Greed is a means to an end Rocko, our goals are what drive us, not always just our profits. And you Ratchettee you can't just blow off someone that helped you get there. That why I wanted to talk to you both but that fire, people died, and that's enough to get you both hanged and I'm sorry to say you will be held prisoner until we decide what to do with you."

So from there I shared a cell with Rocko, I fought when they tried to arrest me but Rocko went quietly so I had a lot of time to work on my Alchemy trying to recreate the corn oil I made before until they figured out what to do with us. Rocko asked me, "What are you going to do when yous make that fuel?"

I was busy trying to work, "I don't know Rocko, it took three weeks of that oil rotting in a pot for it to burn like it did. We will most likely be hanged before that time."

"If yous makes it they let us go?" Rocko asked.

I rolled my eyes, "Yes, Rocko they'll let us go."

"Then everything goes back to normal," Rocko let out a sigh, "What's about me and you?"

I laughed, "There is no you and me Rocko, once I make this fuel I'll leaving a false recipe, they'll know it takes three weeks to make, that will be more than enough time for me to get out of here so I never have to see another Venture member again."

Rocko held onto two bars on our cage, "You said these were yous people."

I half smiled and looked outside the cage, "Some of those goblins owe me a lot of gold and would like to see us hanged so they don't have to pay it back. All the while they were stealing from me, what could I do to stop them? They were always holding back. Once I figure this out I'm going to Ironforge and using this fuel to build tanks that will smash this whole encampment to the ground."

"Do I hold you back?" Rocko asked "What about cooking? You uses to like making people happy with yous food."

I just looked up at him, I couldn't think of anything to say at the time.

"They no hold you back, you do. We should leave because they will kill us. But should just go and never come back, vengeance not help anyone. When ogres attack groms for destroying ogre cities it didn't bring our cultures back. We just lose more ogres and the ones alive only know war. Now there no smart ogres." Rocko told me.

"Well what should I do now?" I asked.

"What makes Ratchet happy?" answering a question with a question.

"It uses to be cooking but I don't want to be here anymore." I said seeming hopeless.

"We could go to North End, uh, Northrend feed mercenaries, no goblins or Ventures there." Rocko suggested.

"And ingredients, all those things you brought back, do they have kitchens there?" I continued.

"They gots Inns with food and rooms so, yes, maybe." He said.

"Then we can go, you can take me there right?" I was pretty excited.

"Yes." Rocko answered.

"Great so I guess I better get back to work, if we wanna to get out of here." I said at the time.

"No need." Rocko pulled two ends of the bars and they snapped off like twigs, like I said he was smarter then your average ogre. I stole some keys to get Rocko out of his cell. And we stole a row boat and made our way to Northrend. Not the whole way, you know, caught a bigger ship that took us there.

From there we were friends again and we set sail to Northrend. We met up with some of Rocko's old buddies that were still smashing up undead, fishing, and hunting. They were making a lot of money since most of the humans had fled since the undead started showing up, and people still wanted furs, leathers, herbs, meat and fish. But I didn't care about that, Rocko took me the Inn with no kitchen but after working for almost a year without a kitchen and doing everything out of a troll pot. I was in heaven, I whipped up something in three hours but I could have been there for the whole day and served everyone in Rocko's old mercenary band the best dinner I've ever made. I, at least I think it was a pretty happy time for me since me tenth birthday. After a week I needed help from Rocko in the kitchen, a lot of the other ogres helped out in the kitchen as well. The owner couldn't be believe the impact it was having, some people waited out in the cold to eat my food, and a lot of other mercenaries leaders came to talk business about jobs and missions. I asked Rocko one day, "You said you had a lot of gold did you leave it in Stranglethorn Vale?"

He shook his head, "No, me leaves it here. Me's never took it, why?"

I smiled, "Cause at this rate I'll be able to open my own restaurant."

"Is that what yous want out of life? Yous seem happy now." Rocko said

I shrugged, "Sure, but not here, it too damn cold, maybe a nice spot by the beach."

Rocko nodded, "Ogres like beach, that's why we's goes to Strange Thorn, me not the only one dat dislike fighting."

"But what should we call it?" I asked, "Ratchettee Spaghetti!" I suggested.

Rocko laughed, "No, you made dat already. It's good but something better."

I looked up at Rocko and thought, "What about Rock and Ratchet?"

Rocko face went pale, "No, leave me out of this, at one time me not do good things for Blood Maul clan. Me ruin yous reputation."

I was a little surprised to hear that, "Okay just Ratchet for now until we think of something better?"

"What's about Ratchettee's Serengeti" Rocko suggested

I looked at him questionably, "Is that some kind of ogre word?" I asked

Rocko half smiled tilded his head to the right, "Kind of."

We were going through suggestions for names when a tall blonde human in full plate armor stormed into the inn. "I am Prince Arthas Menethil heir to the kingdom of Lordaeron, I need soldiers to eradicate the undead that plague your lands."

Yeah Arthas Menethil, aka the Lich King, everyone says the Frostmorne corrupted him, but when he came into the inn I felt something was off about him. Something I only felt when near the meanest and greediest taskmasters in the Venture Company. If that dwarf and his band of treasure hunters weren't with him he would have left with two broken arms, but I was told Muradin Bronzebeard and his band of explorers were regulars. Rocko looked outside the kitchen, "Muradin?!" he shouted.

"Rocko, they never told me you'd never come back, you're a sight for sore eyes, I thought you were scared of undead." Rocko slapped his hand secured it with the other and let go.

"Me's no fighter anymore, me's a cook now." Rocko explained.

"I always knew you were smarter than your average ogre, you always knew when to run away." Muradin said with a laugh, "But this place smells great, you cooked all this food yourself?"

Rocko bended down to the dwarves level and he looked over at me, "You don't say."

"Muradin we don't time for this, if these men are willing to fight let bring them quickly" Arthas ordered.

"Who the hell do you think you are, coming into my kitchen barking orders?!" I finally said.

"With every minute that passes the undead forces grow stronger, goblin." He explained still sounding high and mighty.

"Good, if it keeps backstabbing humans out of here all the better. We're making a lot of gold by importing goods to other parts of Azeroth, we don't need human royalty in our lands telling us how to live." I shouted.

"He's a prince, means he gots lots of gold." I heard one of the mercenary whisper to another.

"Let's kidnap him and hold him for ransom." The other mercenary suggested back.

Arthas pulled out a small bag of gold and gems spilled them on the mercenaries table, "We have very good miners in Lorderon they dug up mines your people already missed, since these gems and gold pieces are rightfully yours I would suggest you smash the ships that are planning on sailing off with them. I could lead you to them if you spare my life of course."

I remember Muradin trying to speak up, but he was pushed away by Arthas, I didn't think much of it then.

"How many ships?" Rocko asked.

Arthas smiled, "Five ships filled with gold and one with gems, any of you willing to continue fighting will be rewarded by my father the king and I will forget the statements that your band just suggested."

"Rocko please don't tell me you believe that, he just trying to save his own skin with his coin purse!" I pleaded.

"I would think a goblin would jump at any chance to take five ships filled with gold lie or not." Arthas said with a laugh.

"What did you say to me?!" I rushed toward him kitchen knife in hand but Rocko stopped me by grabbing me.

"Give me second." Rocko said to Arthas, but a lot of mercenaries were already walking outside.

"Rocko, no, he's lying, I don't like him." I pleaded with Rocko, upset more about the statement Arthas made about me.

"Me knows this, but yous not survive one winter here Ratchet, me knows he's lying but me sees pictures of him. He is prince and he will pay well for job well done, me promise no fighting undead. Me smash boats and then come back in few hours. When we gets paid we all move to Kalnidor nice spot off by the beach like we's planned."

The idea made me smile and it was cold enough as it was. I didn't know what it would be like if the deep winter days were to set in. Rocko left with his old friends and that was the last I saw from him again. I sometimes think if there was anything I could have said to make him stay, or pushed the whole ransom idea, or threw that damn kitchen knife at Arthas's throat how different the world would be today. But I'd like to think that every single ogre that died that day was holding on to hope that this one job could set them up for life, if it wasn't for Rocko I would of taken a deal like the one Arthas offered and maybe Rocko was only looking out for me when he took that job. I'm sorry this is one of my biggest regrets and if anyone holds a grudge against me they could rightfully, but I do beat myself up over that terrible day.

Anyways, it was midday when he left but I stayed up for most of the night waiting for him to come back. I tried to head out there myself but it was so cold. I told myself someone has to come back. The innkeeper let me stay in one of the beds for free and said he would wake me as soon as someone came back, but I woke up a few hours before midday, and nothing. It was warm enough for me to start tracking and so I packed up the spiciest chili I could make, goblin fighting juice, and a big bag of salt chunks and started tracking. I was covered from head to toe but goblins aren't made for cold weather, I used the salt to track my way back, works a lot better than bread crumbs.

I tracked ogre tracks to traces of an encampment, I found the boats that they smashed but they didn't look like boats used to carry precious metals. The tide was somewhat high so all I found was traces of fire and a few broken boat pieces; I thought maybe Arthas made them an offer they couldn't refuse. I mean Rocko had watched me cook a hundred times and once he got hands on he knew the orders really very. He just wasn't very good with a knife. I thought, "humans have to eat too", and if they were all gone maybe they employed Rocko to cook. I told myself that but I really didn't check the wreckage of the boats, I didn't check the fire for burnt cloth or bones, and if the tide weren't up I might have found Rocko's club or more weapons. So I followed traces of tracks, there were so many of them at first but they died down once I went into this cave. I couldn't find any traces ogre tracks or weapons. I thought about heading back but night was setting in, building a fire in that cave was my best bet. So I kept tracking looking for any signs of ogre remands. There was obviously fighting going on human bodies and dragon bones littered all over the place, some of them still warm. I was somewhat relieved, but I still had no idea where Rocko might have been. Then I heard coughing from inside the cave, when a spit, then a heavy breathing. "Hello!" I yelled into the cave.

"Help." I heard a familiar voice say and more coughing. I walked slowly toward the voice, "Hello, I'm looking my friend, did they leave you here for dead."

"I can't move, there something stuck in my collar bone and I'm pinned to the ground, I can't move my arm and I think there's blood in my eye's" I heard the voice say.

As I moved closer into the cave it got darker I couldn't see anything, "It dark I'm going light a torch. Tell me if you could see it!" I yelled.

"I can see light but it's faint, I don't think you're far just walk toward my voice," he said and let out a loud cough.

I walked toward the voice like he said, and I saw the dwarf I met earlier but he was impaled on ice through his thick armor and also pieces of ice where in his body on exposed parts of his body but his helmet was intact, though he was bleeding onto his beard "Is it bad?" he asked.

"Can you move your fingers?" I asked.

"This side, aye, the other." The dwarf cried out in pain, "with some effort, aye."

"Where's Rocko, the rest of the ogres, they were with you?" I asked.

"Died, he killed them… " the dwarf explained but was stopped short, his body was shacking. So I covered him with my jacket. It was too small to cover his whole body though. So a started a fire with wood I took from the smashed ships. The fire was going but the dwarf still shivered; his body was so cold even when exposed to the fire. The areas of ice in his body weren't melting and that big piece in his collar bone showed no signs of melting. I took off his cape and covered him removed some of wet clothes but it seemed like he was breathing less ,I heated up some hot water and tried to heat my clothes just get something warm on him. I wiped him down with hot salt water it helped remove some of the smaller pieces of ice from his wounds. But that big piece.

Oh before I forget, do you know anything about Fighting Juice?

You don't.

Of course you don't, you're from Kezan right, Gallywix probably never told you.

So sometimes when you hunt and you shoot at prey and you don't kill it, you slow it down and you can still chase it without a mount. You keep shooting or stabbing not to kill but to injure, until the beast falls from exhaustion, it also helps if the beast still tries to fight back, hence the name; Fighting Juice, you kill it you take out its heart chop it into tiny bits. Throw it in a pot lined with olive oil, blood and all, add a little more olive oil, add some silverleaf or kingsblood herbs, salt and pepper for flavor. Let that heat up until the meat is nice and brown add some boiling water. THE WATER HAS TO BE BOILING don't put warm or cold water to the pot or it will lose its effect if it cools down at all, just to the point to where all the meat is submerged, stir until it's a unformed brown color and serve to a restrained someone about to undergo painful surgery or someone about enter a losing battle.

The more wounds you add to the game you're hunting the better the juice, you can also add earthroot but that would cause it to become a hallucinogen and no that's not what I gave Muradin Bronzebeard. Well I did, just not the earthroot one, I had to pull out that damn ice spike or he would of died from hypothermia. I'm not a doctor but I've seen the effects Fighting Juice had on people, I mean the dwarf had been suffering for a really long time. I've never tested it on a dwarf before and I think the animals in Northrend might have fought with a lot fury then the ones in Stranglethorn. Another factor could be that maybe the ogres were better hunters then I gave them credit for, might have been able to put a lot more wounds on a prey if they thought of it more as a game. Who can put the must wounds on a single prey? Anyways, once I pulled out the ice spike the dwarf runs out of the cave, bleeding, half naked, screaming on the top of his lungs, not my fault. Okay maybe I gave him WAY too much Fighting Juice, maybe I thought it would be great idea to pour salt in the wound to dry it out, like I said I'm not a doctor, but I didn't think he was going to pull through. I mean he didn't react to the salt water treatment earlier.

That what my nana did for me when I got hurt, said it would clean the wound and stop me from getting hurt again, cause ya know treatment was painful.

Oh don't look at me like that, he's alive now you know, give me a little credit.

Anyways, what was I saying, oh right. Scared the hell out of me, by the time I left the cave to check on him he joined with some other dwarfs riding on one of those, what are they called again? Joemanors, jimonors, worms, big.

Yeah that it, jormungar, well him, a few other gray skinned dwarfs were fighting a few of those things and seeing Muradin hopped up on Fighting Juice ripping out the teeth of these worms. I knew the juice gave you a certain level crazy in battle but holy balls, most of the other dwarfs were just in awe as Muradin killed this group of worms. They didn't even notice me, but I wasn't built for this kind of weather so I went back into the cave without any of them noticing. He was going to be in a butt load of pain once the fighting juice wore off, but he did manage to tell me what happen to Rocko and his band, but never said who. I figured it was Arthas but I was unsure why, that damn wind chill chilled my fingers to the bone, the snow that fell hurt like tiny wet shocks of electricity. I would have liked to keep tracking while the trail was still hot but I used up all my salt trying to fix up Muradin Bronzebeard, but there was still a trail of salt leading back to Arthas encampment and I remember there was a port within looking distance were I found the wreckage. So I went back into the cave where I found Muradin, ate my chili and rested until day broke, there was enough light to see almost everything in the cave I spent the night in, but I still woke up cold, with a sinus headache, a really sore throat, and a pretty bad cough. I could clearly see there was a something like a throne or pedestal with writing on it, it said, _""Whomsoever takes up this blade shall wield power eternal. Just as the blade rends flesh, so must power scar the spirit"_ I finally got it, this whole quest, meeting Muradin's explores, betraying Rocko and Muradin was to find a treasure. That cheating backstabbing human, I was going to kill him for that, and in the back on my mind I wondered how much could a blade like that be worth. I ran toward the encampment vengeance, rage, and greed burned in my heart. I ran with three blades one in each hand and another in my mouth. The prince of Lorderon seem like he was waiting for the troops to move their supplies in a ship, but he was wearing completely different armor when I saw him at the inn and it seemed that his hair turned completely white. That didn't matter though, I was smiling from ear to ear when I saw that beautiful blade on his back. Without much thought I jumped up and stabbed my blade into Arthas's collar bone feeling the blade go into flesh and then crack through the areas of his upper vertebrae. A sweet sound of a clean and quick kill, but Arthas didn't fall down like a sack of potatoes like he should have. He grabbed me but I had already started to work on his blade I grabbed with both hands and then something happened.

Why are you looking at me like that? You don't think I did that do you? You know there's an old goblin saying, "Charging alone takes an uncommon daring or uncommon stupidity. Or both." You know what, I had both.

ANYWAYS! All of a sudden, I was in a dark room and I saw this glowing green orc with black tattoos and glowing white eyes it said, "What are you doing here goblin?"

"Arthas, he killed Rocko. I thought I killed him and that blade he found has got to be worth a fortune, but where am I? I have no idea how I got here" I stated

"Is vengeance what you desire?" The orc asked.

"Kind of, I don't know, maybe." I thought back on Rocko's words, "Vengeance didn't solve anything. I mean sure I wanted him dead but thinking about it now. I think I would like to make off with his little quest reward. Oh to see the look on his face when I'm rolling in a mountain of gold once I sell that thing. Maybe I could use the power of the blade to power shredders, oh racers. That would be fun or maybe…"

"SHUT UP!" the orc commanded. "Alright you clearly don't want vengeance but you just killed Arthas, are planning on doing any more killing with Frostmorne?"

"Frost-what?" I said, "Oh right, the whole ' _Whomsoever takes up this blade shall wield power eternal. Just as the blade rends flesh, so must power scar the spirit'_ thing, yeah I know bad convoluted contract when I see it. I like spirit intact thank you." I said with a laugh, "Don't worry, I know someone with a lot of money that probably going to buy Frost-whatever that won't mind having their soul scared."

"YOU'RE JOKING! I'm not a trinket to be sold to a vendor!" as the orc got mad the room started to shack.

"Oh I get it now, you're the sword. Big enchantment there buddy, a orc soul. Yeah maybe the whole power conduit idea would be better. You know we goblins do have some morals you know, and nothings better protected then something useful and dangerous. If this all in my head, I just gotta figure out a way to get out of here." Nothing is greater than a goblins imagination I just needed to gain some control. I just imaged myself in the biggest Fel-magic controlled machine I could think of and as I thought of it I became it. I towered over the orc and was about to crush him with my huge mechanical legs. The orc seemed out gunned but this time he was out minded and as I was about to take control when he yelled, "Be grateful to be me boy!"

When I came back I could have swore ten minutes had just gone by but it was a few seconds after, Arthas pulled me off like a rag doll and threw me on the sand. He pulled out the blade from his neck cracked his neck to the side and pointed Frostmorne at me. A few of his guards were about to run me threw and I yelled, "Time out, wait, just let me say one thing before you kill me, please." I said.

I heard a voice say, "Who sent you assassin? My prince, are you hurt?"

Arthas put his Frostmorne in the sand, "I'm fine, the little goblin just broke the armor. Let me kill him though."

"Wait, I thought you'd say that. Trying to cover up your tracks," Two guards were holding me by my arms, "You killed Rocko, you sent him to destroy your own boats because you said there was treasure on those boats."

"Is that true Arthas?" the better dressed human in cloth looked at Arthas.

"It's true, what of it?" Arthas said seemly completely emotional.

The guards let me go and looked at Arthas in disbelief, "But you said..."

"I said, what needed to be said, guardsmen" Arthas interrupted. "You will fall in line and kill this assassin."

"I am the kings' emissary you disobeyed your father the king and covered it up, and what's even worst is your showing no signs of guilt of the crimes you committed." The emissary ordered.

Arthas placed one hand on his head, "I know I don't know what wrong with me. I know I should feel bad about betraying that band of mercenaries and Muradin but I don't."

The emissary looked at him with some concern and patted Arthas on the back, "You have seen so much death today but it will pass. Goblin!" his looked over at me.

"Ratchettee." I stood up and corrected.

"Right, Ratchettee, I found this in the remains I thought it was art but I think after looking into it. I think it might be some kind of writing. I think you should have it." The emissary gave it to me a green stone placard and I knew what it was; it was made of ogre hieroglyphics. I could only make out one word "MAP" "Arthas!" the emissary shouted.

Arthas nodded got down one knee put his hand down to my level, "I'm sorry for the loss of your friend, it's my fault, and your right to want to kill me, but if there any way I could repay you you just need to ask."

I crossed my arms defensively no amount of gold could bring Rocko back. I looked beyond Arthas and saw he left Frostmorne in the sand. I remembered whatever that thing was inside that blade. I put out my hand and shook it the way humans do. "If you want to do me a favor when you get out to sea, throw that cursed blade into the ocean, it will be the death of you." Arthas looked back at it, "I mean look what it's done to your hair."

Arthas laughed, "Yours too Ratchettee, I suppose it served its purpose. I really have no reason to keep it."

I pulled out some of my hair and it was completely white and it's been like that even since. I suppose Arthas too, and that was the last I ever saw him, but it wasn't the last I heard from him, but we all know that story.

He sailed off and I looked at the hieroglyphic it couldn't really be read it but I knew it was a map. After about three days deciphering it I figured out where it leads. Rocko's stash, in a cave and in that cave was a small hill of gold and gems and a chest of very well enchanted armor. I mean I still remember the feel of those furs like chilled silk but kept all the Northrend cold out. I found a piece of paper inside the chest in orcish, "Dear Ratchet, if you're reading this I'm dead. At one time I was very good at hiding, stealing, and killing. But then I get bigger and hiding got a lot harder, but me stole lot of gold and jewels from the bloodmaul, my real name Salalash which means 'rolling stone', and stolen many things for the stonemaul clan and me steals from Venture and mercenary clans and you. Not so much money but secrets, but sometime I steal for myself. Me horde goods but me can never spend because people know me to be thief. So mes just collect and collect but me's never can share it because me not trust anyone. Until me met you, so young, and wanting things to help people. Me want that too, so whatever you do with me spoils, me knows yous uses it for good. Your friend always Rocko."

He said he thought he would have enough to build a restaurant but there was enough gold there to build a whole city and just how we planned a nice spot by the beach in Kalimdor and that town is now is called, you guessed it, Ratchet.

I wanted to make a restaurant city, a place where you can go and find any kind of ingredients without having to travel all the way to one part of the world. But most of my goblin friends didn't know much about building houses, it was a complete disaster. That's how I met Baron Revilgaz he had the professionals, the ones that knew how to build and he introduced to Gazlowe, he knew a lot about building but nothing about kitchens or cooking. He kept trying to build walls and defenses. I mean after finding a new and unexplored land, Gazlowe was already trying ways to set it on fire "if the worst were to happen" he would say, but I wasn't doing any better.

I told him about my vision for a restaurant city and he said it was stupid idea to try to build something that would entertain people in a world that was built on war. I was trying to push a meaning of peace, once the war stopped between orcs and humans they could come together and share food. I tore up a lot of his building plans and tore down a lot of his buildings built for war or for polluting the water. We rarely agreed on most things and I stayed in an inn where most of the food was and he stayed on the opposite side of the town. I remember I said to him, "If you're in charge of maintenance why don't we just set the whole place on fire and call it a day!"

Okay I didn't say that, but I WANTED to say that.

The guy like to fish but I use that term lightly, throwing dynamite into the water hardy counts as fishing, but that's how the guy ate. A lot of fights broke out between orcs and humans, night elves and high elves, and goblins and gnomes. I hired a lot of security and even trained them to fight, once Gazlowe saw my skill with a knives and clubs he knew why I didn't depend on military defenses. He did make some pretty awesome shields for our guards, you know around that time I think we were finally starting to hit a middle ground. Not walls but elite protection personal, people that could meet you, greet you and give you directions, but would beat you into a coma if you stepped out of line. That's when Baron Revilgaz showed up one day for dinner, and said during our meal, "That was really good, but you know the war's not going to end Ratchet, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing."

"We have to keep pushing peace isn't that why were neural?" I asked.

"No it's not, we profit on whoever we like, but we don't stand in the middle of race wars, and you don't feed a cat and a dog from the same kennel regardless of how good the kibbles are. I think you've seen it before, haven't you been accused of giving the better food to someone base on their race." He stated.

I half smiled and rolled my eyes. "People aren't cats and dogs, if they both agree that food is good, I'll plan on employing more than just goblins and ogres. If they can work together maybe they can play together. We just have to keep pushing."

Baron shook his head, "That's beautiful in a fairy tale story for children, but this is business and in business only the strong survive. I'm trying to make sure it's us goblins or whoever buys the most from us, I know how much you spent this year it was a lot more than I did, but I know how much you profited it, was a lot less what I made. This means you're a bleeding heart, and you're going to run dry sooner or later. Even I know you have more money than me now. What I'm trying to tell you Ratchettee is that doesn't have to be that way. Let me make a few buildings on your land something our people could use to defend ourselves."

"You wanna build weapons don't you, forget it. This place has a armory and that's all we need." I crossed my arms and was about leave.

"Hold on, I'm not talking about a brash piece of metal used for bashing skulls, I'm talking about the fighting juice, the one you mixed up for Venture Company, and yeah there still looking for you by the way."

I sat back down, "Fighting Juice is hit or miss which is why it's hard to start a business off it. Don't you have hunters that can hunt game?"

We do, but none crazy enough to go to Northrend to get the best of the stuff, but we do have trappers, you could lead them, you know the areas, you know the routes to take ships, you go there when you run low on funds. I'll I'm asking is you share the profit." Baron stated but the way he was rising is voice if felt like I was being ordered.

"I am not a hunter, nor would I hunt there even if I was, the practice of harvesting fighting juice is a cruel one. But you said trappers didn't you, you want people fight animals?" It was kind of easy to see.

"Bingo," Baron slapped his hand together, "think about it Ratchettee people will only want peace once the lust for blood is stated, we just need an arena, maybe here on Ratchet and you to bring back a few animals from Northrend and the fighting juice is something we can both sell on the side."

This put a terrible taste in my mouth I knew getting Fighting Juice was cruel way to hunt but this seemed downright inhumane, I looked over at Gazlowe and he seemed pretty disgusted at well.

"I need to think about this." I said

Baron got up wiped off his hands, "Take all the time you need, Ratchettee. This is your town, for what it's worth. Maybe you could join me for a little game next week."

"I'm not a hunter, no thanks." I stated.

Baron shook his head, "No I mean a game game with friends and gold."

"He means gabbling." Gazlowe cut in

"Gabbling what's that" I really didn't know at the time.

"I'll show you next week." Baron Revilgaz winked, left with his bodyguard, and set sail to Booty Bay.

"I don't think you should do it I've seen what these games can do to people." Gazlowe suggested.

I half smiled, "Can I win?"

Gazlowe shrugged, "It's not impossible, no; maybe I could teach you how to play."

So Gazlowe started showing how to play poke-poke, dark-jack, and Taranis hold em. And that week we went to Booty Bay and took a whole pot of gold from everyone from the goblin cartel. I thought to myself I may not even need to go back to Rocko's stash, I can win a pot and that would be enough gold for the whole week, but I wanted more, Gazlowe came to play as well but I broke even the next week. Which means I needed to go back to Northrend but I remembered sometimes Baron Revilgaz would play all the money he had and lose it, because he had his stash there in Booty Bay and he just went down stairs got more gold and started playing again. So I brought a bigger boat to Northrend and I had a little bit of help move all the gold this time and before I left I asked Gazlowe to make a big safe and boy was he surprised when I came back. All the gold I owned was on one ship and this time I invited him over to Ratchet's place. Long story short and I know you wanna hear that, you've been typing for a long time now and you're starting to sweat.

The first three cards on the flop gave a three of a kind for me so I raised, two of the cards were on the flop I had one of them and so did everyone else.

The turn gave everyone a shot at a flush if they had two cards of the same coat, but gave me a full-house, Gazlowe went all in, and Baron Revilgaz went all in as well.

Then the river card came up, it gave the same coat giving anyone that at least one card of the coat a chance at the flush, and Baron put a piece of paper on the pile of chips.

"What's that?" Gazlowe asked

"It's the deed to Booty Bay," Baron Revilgaz replied.

"I can't match that." Gazlowe said.

"Yes you can, you stop working for Ratchettee and you work for me for free for the next five years, life threatening jobs or not, but I don't want you died, I'll give you free room board but anything you invent is mine." Baron put his cards in his lap. "If you win you make Booty Bay however you like."

"And what if I win." I finally cut in.

Baron looked over at me, "Well if you win I guess you get Booty Bay and Gazlowe but your vision for peace are a little farfetched, especially now. But you'll need something of value"

I took one of the playing cards that were on the board and in pen and I wrote, deed to Ratchet and signed the bottom. "Is that good enough for you?"

Baron smiled, "Yep,"

Gazlowe looked at both of us, "I have the high flush ace, two cities, what am I going to do?"

I laughed, put down my full-house, "Sorry Gazlowe but don't worry, no life threating jobs, I promise. What do you have flush?"

Baron looked a little disappointed, "Yep you got me, I have a flush."

"Well a full-house beats a flush" I stated.

Baron looked me in the eyes and smiled, "You're right a full house does beat a flush, unless it's a straight flush."

He put down his cards and there it was, just like that, "Now, get off my property."

And that's how I lost Ratchet and everything Rocko gave me when he died. That why Gazlowe was working with Thrall on so many life threatening jobs, but me I went a little nuts. Okay, I went bat-shit crazy. I was already wanted by the Venture Company and Baron made sure to tell them any kind sightings they had of me. He didn't want me near any other goblins in the cartel and when my hormones' starting kicking in my vision started to blur. I think I must have climbed to the World Tree and dove into its waters. I kept killing animals and doing who knows what to them, I couldn't find any females. I mean I saw female orcs from time to time that looked good but they weren't us, me, and I never really understood sex at the time. I mean I knew how our kind came to be but I hadn't seen a nana from a baby hole in a long time. Where were they, I thought. I kept myself covered in blood and mud most of the time. I learned to crawl faster than I could run, I killed so many goblins when I saw them. They were hunting me, I remember that, so I killed them. Most goblins are expendable, and a lot of goblins are hard to get rid of, Me, I'm both at the same time. But everyone else didn't have faces; they never saw me unless I wanted them. But I stole to eat and if I saw a goblins out in the forest I killed them, I don't look at those times with much regret, I figured the more victims I killed, the more likely I was to get the right one. I lived like a rat; you might have guessed I completely forgot how to cook, I forgot everything, how to speak, how to think, I remember Nana had a name for this a 'Giblin'. Yeah, that's what I must have become, but I wasn't like them, I was a giblin but another kind. I could remember my name, Ratchet, adventurers said it from time to time, my city, my town. It was mine, and I was going to get it back, but I couldn't figure out how. I wanted to do something but I wasn't sure what it was. Ratchet that was the only thing I could think of. I sometimes had visions or my city. Not the town, but something better, lit up with lights, races of every shape and color. Food going from place to place, machines, boat races, and fireworks. Then it turns into a nightmare, people killing one another, and my people picking through the bodies like rats. I see myself and I am everywhere and I'm nowhere. I don't know how long I lived like that, those years seem to go by in a blur but one day my vision finally focused on something. A woman, a goblin woman, but younger and prettier running through the forest, I asked her, "What are you?"

She was about to blast me when I snuck up behind her, "I'm a goblin, what are you?"

"I'm Ratchet," I told her, "are Venture, come to hunt Ratchet, you wanting burning fuel, well I have some if you like toast"

She was kind of nervous, "No I'm not looking for fuel."

"Good, cause I would toast you, make you delicious." Like I said crazy, but I remember that day.

"You with Steamwell Cartel come to take Fighting Juice. I don't have any" I did though, I was living off it.

"Fighting Juice, no, I'm just on a job. I need to 20 wolves pelts or something. I really wasn't paying attention. You know you look a lot like a goblin" she stated with a smile.

The smile made my heart hurt but my head feel really good. "I am goblin, but goblins hunt me, but I hunt them first, Ratchet always wins."

She looked at me quizzically, "Ratchet like the town."

The name I heard so much from others, "Ratchet is my town, my city, they stole it, full-house beat's a flush unless it's straight. You not look like goblin, you look like Nana but prettier."

"Thank you?" She shrugged.

"Ratchet can see now, vision not so blurred. Ratchet can speak Ratchet can….." It all came back to me like a flood, "Ah shit, where in the hell am I?"

"Wow your voice sounds way different now." It did change, like, way deeper than it ever been before.

My head still kind of hurt, "What's the year?"

"2013" she answered.

I stood there for a few seconds and trying to recall the concept of math, "That would make me eight years now"

"You're eight years old?" Seeming unbelieving.

"No, I've been here for eight years, I was bat shit crazy until now, I think that would make me like 20 now, right?" I asked.

"I don't know, we've never met before, so what's your name" she asked.

"Ratchettee or Ratchet, yeah like that town, yours?"

"Strator, like, uh well nothing."

"That's an odd name, nice to meet you." She put out her hand and I slapped it the way the Venture Company uses to, a series hand slaps and fist bumps but she didn't catch on. "Hey I know this is going to sound weird but…"

Strator crossed her arms, "More weird then the conversation I just had with you, unlikely."

"Where do baby goblins come from?" I asked.

Her eyes's went a little wide, "Nope you were right, are you telling me you really don't know."

I shrugged and half smiled, "Nope."

She took a deep breath, "Okay where do I start, when a momma goblin and daddy goblin like each other a lot, the daddy-"Well you know how it goes. She explained the whole thing to me. I told her that I had only seen one female, the one that raised me and I hadn't see her in years and the past eight years was my hormones had been trying balance out, and the Fighting Juice, and well everything. She helped me get cleaned up and then she helped a little more, it was really nice of her if you ask me.

After that I registered as a member of the Horde now that they were employing goblins from Kezan not cartel anymore, I started a guild called the Penetrators of Booty Bay and we plan on taking back the city by force if we have too. And here I am.

Sheesh I need water.


	7. Chapter 7 Telavani

(Lines from: Alice in Wonderland, Alice: American McGee, Alice: Return to Madness, Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines)

(Personal note 'Lost Ones' are players.)

"The priest of Elune, our people are doomed, but our forces allied we'll grow in bloom. Not too late, but not too soon." Telavani served the High Prince tea next to his father the King.

"You were ordered not to speak unless spoken to, priest!" Anasterian Sunstrider King of the high elves set his cup of tea down clinking the glass against the plate.

"I like her riddles father; it certainly makes dinner more entertaining." The Prince took a sip, "and her tea is exquisite"

"Thank you my royal upstarts" Telavani bowed, "I have learned to see and hear, light and shadow all so clear, but truth comes out in riddles that are safe enough to share." Telavani stated, prince Kael'Thas Sunstrider smiled, but the King let out another deep sigh.

"This is why high elves don't worship that damned night elf goddess; it kills them, turns them against their own, or whatever the hell happened to her." The King complained

"Yet we've always listened to their counselors, they haven't led us wrong before, I find them more trusting then our human neighbors, yet I haven't seen any in the city for a while now." Kael'Thas stated.

"There are few of us dying from the plague that litters our lands but that's nothing compared to the humans." The King laughed, "By the time the plague passes we might be able to get the humans to surrender their lands thanks to that little concoction that mage brewed up."

"Don't remind me father, I know that Silvermoon has been richer than it's ever been, but if they ever find out the truth about-" Kael'Thas said but was interrupted.

"And they won't!" Anasterian interrupted, "Even if they do, there won't be many of them left. Humans are lesser, and we have something they all want, soon they will all be slaves to us or themselves." The King took another sip of tea, "You're right though, this tea is exquisite, totally worth the ramblings of a mad priest." The King put down his cup, "And it's put me right out, I will see you tomorrow morning my son." The King got up from his chair and left the hall.

"The world is never as mad as it could be, father." Kael'Thas said under his breath.

The King stopped with his back turned but turned his head with his eyes staring angrily at Kael'Thas. He turned his whole body towards Telavani and Kael'Thas, smiled, shook his head, and let out another sigh. "I like her Kael'Thas and I don't want to get rid of her, but you can't let the things she says get into your head. Good night." And he left the dining room.

"Telavani could you join me for a little more tea and do try to speak normally" Kael'Thas put out his hand gesturing toward a chair that was close to her.

"Of course, my Prince." But she jumped on top of the table and sat in the chair next to him, poured tea for herself and filled Kael'Thas's cup. "What was it that you wanted to speak about?"

"I'm not sure." Kael'Thas feeling that his personal shape was being violated.

"Then it doesn't matter what is spoken, only what is enjoyed, life is short, and tea is inundate. Now we have more tea then life." Telavani spoke in glee.

Kael'Thas felt a little confused, "We have lots of tea and were high elves, and we usually have lives longer then tea supplies."

"Speaking in rhymes, maybe there is hope for you, but you don't know when you going to die. It's soon, I too." Telavani laughed and took a sip of tea.

Kael'Thas's went wide; he stood up, grabbed Telayani by the neck and slammed her into the floor with her chair, "That sounded a lot like a threat. You're an assassin then! You've come to kill me, a knife while I slept, or an army outside?" Telavani gasped for breath and laughed at the same time. "My father told me not to listen to you but, you have five seconds until I burn you into a crisp."

Telavani gasp, smiled, and spoke "The priest of Elune, our people are doomed, but our forces allied-"

Kael'Thas shook her by her neck, "You said that already, do you really want those to be your last words."

Telavani laughed, reached for a tea cup, poured burning hot tea on her face and mouth choking even more, she let go of the cup on the floor started to go limp. Kael'Thas let out a roar, threw her body and chair at the wall, she gasped and coughed. "Father would be unhappy if his tea brewer was missing or dead and I don't want to kill someone so beautiful." Kael'Thas stated.

Telavani breathed like she was trying to catch her breath, but she smiled, "Of course I'm beautiful, no one would tolerate me if I wasn't. I would be dead or in prison, but the goddess Elune protects me from certain advances." Telavani clapped her hands twice while she was still on the floor staring at Kael'Thas, "Look this way, not like me at me." She ordered with a smile on her face.

She put one hand in the air snapped her fingers and levitated herself and her chair up to where she was sitting upright, she crossed her legs and leaned to one side of her chair, laughed, shook her head, and looked back at Kael'Thas. Kael'Thas really looked at Telavani clothes, she wore thin white linen that hooked on her arms and pelvic areas that flowed behind her, a golden choker imbruted with purple gems that held her golden, white, and bronze top up and a white and yellow hood that covered most her head but her black hair flowed in curls behind her and her blue glowing eyes illuminated all of her makeup, mad smile, laugh, and beautiful features. She had so much exposed skin; Kael'Thas thought something terrible could happen to her if she was in the wrong part of the city. "I was beginning to wonder about that," Kael'Thas stated. "how you can walk around the streets dressed like that."

Telavani rolled her eyes, "There more to being a grownup then boobies and alcohol. The goddess does protect her own, even one from the shadows such as I."

Kael'Thas crossed his arm defensively, "I know you have these predictions sometimes, but are they always true?" Kael'Thas asked.

"I mean what I say, you might try it occasional," Telavani stated, "but no, I was told a riddle about my father's death and what he thought that his next lucky break meant money but was actually his neck on the floor. Many riddles about my brother's death but he is too slippery for death to catch, he doesn't want to hear my warnings anymore, I miss him so, so I don't usually say."

"Why is that?" Kael'Thas replied.

Telavani disappeared into nothingness and reappeared lying on the dining table as if it were her bed, poured herself tea, and drank a small sip. "She who saves a single soul, saves the world, but what I see never actually was, always to be, no one will ever see what I see, nor will they ever, because life is the present, one gift I am short of then most people, but you're going to kill me, that way you can listen and then not listen."

Kael'Thas put his hand under his chin and thought for a second, "'She who saves a single soul saves the world' my soul" he thought "'what she sees never was, always to be. No one will ever see what she sees nor will they ever'. She sees the future." Kael'Thas smiled at the sudden relation, but looked at her in pity, she said, " 'You're going to kill me that way you can listen and not listen. ' " It was the only direct thing she said. "Why would I kill you?" he asked out loud.

Telavani took a butter knife off the table, climbed off the table, grabbed Kael'Thas's hand, put the knife in his hand, and then held it to her throat, "Bravery and I are not on intimate terms," She stated, "thus I've lived long. My visions whether truth or madness cannot be ignored so I speak without regard of consequence. Your courage deserves no less. You have suffered great pain and you've caused some, but you will be tested by a more deeply painful anguish. Keal'Thus Sunstrider, there is worst to come. You and this kingdom cannot both survive. So, take my life so I do not lead you into madness."

Telavani held the knife with so much pressure that her skin was turning red, Kael'Thas only had to move it to the side, "What would killing you solve? I can take your warning and be done with it." He asked.

Telavani looked around the room, "'A Lost One' greater then gods in our world, but less than men in their own, will save your life ten times over and lead your armies to victory, even now they watch over us, but one threatens to take my body for his own entertainment." Telavani begins to cry slightly, "I can't see, the shadows show me so many things in future but I can't see what's at the end of the tunnel. There's no man I love, no children, I only see hardships, war, and loneliness." Telavani put her face close to Kael'Thas lips like she wanted to kiss him, "Please, the goddess will not accept me if I take my own life, so please, my Prince take my warning and my life."

Kael'Thas pushed her away, ripped the knife from Telavani's hands, pushed her into the table, and paced side to side, "YOU!" He pointed, "YOU'RE MAD! YOU'RE CRAZY, I will kill you, but not now! If there is any truth to this, I might need you later."

Telavani smiled and shook her head. She turned around, jumped up on top the table, and walked away from Kael'Thas like it was her own personal cat walk "Heavy is the burden of the wise ones when no understands a word we say." Telavani's face was blank like she was thinking of a distance memory when she said that, and she let out another loud laugh, but tears were still falling from her face, "Mad shadow priest never bothered anyone, but no one ever believes me to this day. Why should they. How is a sparrow like a writing desk? "

"Get down from there, you and I are not the same, why should I believe you, and why not give this information to my father." Kael'Thas ordered.

She laughed slightly, wiped her eyes and face, and it seemed whatever madness drove her before was back in full force. She turned and faced Kael'Thas and was laughing and smiling again, "BeCaUse you're a scrumptious young plaything straight out of life and into high elf royalty, you smell new, like watermelon dew on a freshly cut pineapple tree, I'm I frightening you, little prince?"

Kael'Thas crossed his arms defensively "No, but I should put you in prison."

Telavani put down her hood and pulled her hair free letting her curly black hair free to fall from her back and face. "Oh, the law is just, just a whisper away, A way home to wonder, wonder who, who knows how to measure rules. WITH A RULER! Cruel rules. The Light will only show what is truly there, but the more shadows you have the less you see, but the more you stare into the shadows the more you see what others do not or will not. Leave this bit of chaos in a certifiable giggle, you must greet the sun before his lovely daughter moon. You can't forsake the journey for the safely of your room."

"I know-. " Kael'Thas began but was interrupted. When Telavani disappeared and reappeared again in front of his face bent over on the table at his level and touched his nose gently with her finger.

"Which is right and wrong, if right is right is left wrong, or is it what's left?" Telavani asked.

The Kael'Thas backed away, but the words made Kael'Thas suppress a smile, "I was going to say…"

"Your prayers," Telavani interrupted, "for you only pray for those that cannot pray for themselves, do you also pray for yourself?"

Those words brought a surge of pain to Kael'Thas's head; he wasn't sure if it was the words or the work of some spell "Don't interrupt me I can't."

"Go to the outhouse?" Telavani giggled in glee.

Kael'Thas grew angry, "MAD WOMAN!"

Telavani stood up with her hands on her hips "Yes you are, but what am I?"

Kael'Thas charged a fireball "I'll give you…"

"A present? You shouldn't have, I have nothing for you." She stepped off the table and walked toward him again making Kael'Thas feel even more defensive. Her smile seemed more like a predator playing with their food.

"She is getting in your head Kael'Thas, don't kill her." Kael'Thas thought.

Telavani laughed out loud continuing to walk forward as Kael'Thas was getting closer and closer to the wall "Already there, and you should." She said.

Kael'Thas blasted her with fire but not enough to kill her, she fell backwards onto the table again setting some of her clothes on fire "Get me food and I live, give me a drink and I die." She said as poured the remaining tea on her burnt clothes.

Kael'Thas put his hands on his head, "Please stop, no more riddles, no more talk, just stay out of my head!"

Telavani body turned into a thousand small purple butterflies and flew around Kael'Thas "No one's in your head Kael'Thas, that's just crazy." It was many small high-pitched voices at once.

"You of all people, you…" Kael'Thas spoke but she reappeared levitated upside-down behind him, her hair falling near the floor scaring him again.

"Make it too easy to manipulate. Men make terrible priest, care more about the respect of position, they never know their place, or anyone's place. When you go into madness my Prince you won't be as insightful as I." As she spoke her position slowly changed from upside down levitating to lying like she was on her own bed in midair.

Kael'Thas held on to his own heart, it was beating fast. Most priests he had met followed the ways of the Light to the letter, and only used their shadow powers as a means to an end, but this priest had a completely different power and it was like nothing he had ever seen before, "Do the shadows see my death?"

Telavani laughed at his fear and question, "If you really want to know, why don't you ask them yourself, they went that way," She pointed in one direction but looked in another.

"Who did?" He asked.

"The shadows."

"They did?"

"They did what?"

"Went that way?"

"Who did?"

"The shadows?"

"What shadows?"

"But you just said."

"Here they are!" Telavani thought back and slowly put her feet on the floor, "'No you will not be died, the dead feel no pain, but that's no comfort once alive.' That's what they say, that's wasn't what I was asking. They answer but with too much information, the shadows are quite mad you see."

Keal'Thas rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, "I don't want information from mad shadows." He complained.

Parts of Telavani's body started slowly disappearing from the feet up, "Oh, you can't help that. Most all shadows are mad." Telavani laughed, "You might have noticed that I am not all there myself. I will stay here and die. The day he sees you walking away, he'll be left, cleaning up the mess I made."

Kael'Thas grabbed her arm before she could disappear completely and her whole body could be seen now, "I will not leave, nor will I, nor will anyone else, kill you, in three weeks if this is just the work of some mad goddess I will kill you myself, regardless of how beautiful you are, but until then it's business as usual. So, shut up and toe to line, while I redefine, how this all will be mine. I have a dream; it's got a full head of steam."

Telavani looked at Kael'Thas hand holding on to her arm and smiled at Kael'Thas suspiciously, "They just spoke to you, didn't they?"

Kael'Thas let go, his face went blank, and the blood left his face, "I need to leave, I'm tired. I need to sleep. Good night." And he stormed out of the dining room.

-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t-t

A week later messages came to Silvermoon when Lordaeron fell to the traitorous prince Arthas killing his father, they were asking for their aid but scouts said that only those that could fight and steered clear of Arthas attack escaped the wreckage. Many citizens lies were lost. "TELAVANI!" The King shouted.

The mad high elf seemed to come from nowhere but walked into the throne room in a few seconds, wearing a yellow and white velvet corset top dress with purple gems that made her exposed bosom rise up and her waist tighten in, a satin long sleeve crop jacket with big brown shoulders, a bronze, white, and gold short mini dress, and long black boots that made her look three inches taller. Topped off with a brown and purple top hat and the smile she wore so well, she bowed gracefully. "It's a bit early for tea, but it's just about done brewing if you would like me to bring it to you now. I don't nearly have as much feed all our guest though." She looked at the messenger.

The king smiled as she approached and completely forgot why she called her, "Father." Kael'Thas stood beside him impatient as his father was entranced. King Anasterian Sunstrider shook his head, was about to say something, but was interrupted.

"If you don't care for tea then try to make polite conversation, but I have an excellent idea; let change the subject. My king and prince the day is warm and bright, a pleasant walk, a pleasant talk, is a sure to be a delight" she held out her hand to the king.

"Is this your jester your highness?" The messenger asked.

"Nothing short of it, I still don't understand where she got those damn huge shoulders things." Kael'Thas complained.

"Kael, they are becoming quite the style just of late, and even in grave news she's..." Anasterian spoke to his son.

Telavani stepped toward the messenger, "There no time for whatever it is you want to talk about, it's time for tea. Leave or you, you, you-you!"

"TELAVANI!" The prince and the king both shouted her name in unison. "This is grave news," The King spoke, "You usually have visions of the future, yet you been quitter then I have ever seen you this week. Didn't you have a vision about anything that happened in Lordaeron?"

Telavani laughed slightly and rolled her eyes, "As knowing where you are going is preferred to being lost, you must ask." Telavani stated, "Kael'Thas knows a thing or two. And I, myself, don't need a weathervane to know which way the wind blows, but is it that time now? I was hoping your son would have killed me by that time; oh, this is a pity, you probably have about, a few hours now. A Lost One guides his hand as it always has, we must invite him for tea." She placed both her hands on the side of her face.

The messenger was somewhat shocked to hear her use words in such a colorful way, he knew that jesters were usually mad, but she was so insightful. "Kael'Thas you stupid, bullheaded, blonde, bully, you scared her into silence! She is much more than a brewer and a pretty face you know!" The King yelled.

"Father you said, 'not you can't let the things she says get into your head.' She wanted me to kill her; she spoke of Lost One's, said they were going to take over her body. Its crazy talk, riddles that mean nothing." Kael'Thas explained.

"Riddles have meaning once you solve them, did she say anything about Silvermoon, of the Kingdom of Quel'thalas?" Anasterian demanded.

"She said, there is worst to come. I and this kingdom cannot both survive."

Anasterian slamed the arms of his throne with his fist, "Messenger have there been any scout reports of incoming undead?"

"It was like you're, uh, I'm sorry what are you called?" He looked at Telavani.

"Telavani Lightwood at your service, but never Tela, it makes me feel fat and tubby"

"No I mean your title, your job."

"I am the one and only high elf priest of the goddess Elune, but I have chosen to learn ways of shadows and the goddess is graceful enough to allow it, but I also like tea and fortunetelling. Unfortunately my fortunetelling is never fortunate, I guess that makes me a un-fortuneteller. "

"She's mad if you couldn't tell, finding meaning behind her insights is quite a chore." Kael'Thas complained again.

"Well she right, a large number of dead ones near Temple of Light a few days ago," The messenger explained, "Uther the Lightbringer was among the dead, must have thin there numbers. They seemed to be headed this way but moving slowly, not big enough to destroy Lorderon and certainly not large enough to storm the gates of Quel'thalas. We out number them 100 to 1"

"See father we'll send out a volley and they will die in the woods." Kael'Thas stated.

"How is a King Arthas like a typhoon?" Telavani asked.

"A typhoon doesn't want to be a typhoon, but Arthus is nothing like a typhoon." Kael'Thas answered.

"You usually correct my prince, the undead are more than merely alive." Telavani stared into nothingness as she spoke, "They have other parts. The Lich King will deprive them of what remands of their deranged souls. They need care. Sanity not required, limited quantity, I'm not mad enough to be rejected. I'm like him, of him in a way; I'm like him, but not him. For I am him without the warmth of the Light on my back, his is gone, taken to feed the hunger. I should say us, for I am like him, but you're on your way my Prince. The way is clearly marked."

"He is mad like you." The King asked.

"Yes, even though I always stare into the shadow and the shadows stare back at me, I always feel the warm loving embrace of the Light on my back. Even though I turn my back on the Light, I would never leave its sight. Frostmorne hungers. Frostmorne is coming with its shiny cars, with comfy seats and wheels of stars. So hush my little ones have no fear, for the man with the sword is the engineer." Telavani spoke the words like there was another soul saying them, she fell to her knees and held her heart, "This, this is a better fate then the one that awaits me. I would rather be eaten then controlled by a Lost One."

"Who are these Lost One's?" Kael'Thas asked.

Telavani looked at Kael'Thas, "They guide his hand; lead his army, they kill without mercy. Our walls, homes, people are nothing to them; they are obstacles, objectives, adventures, quest, GAMES!" Telavani laughed and cried at the same time, "Frostmorne please take my body and soul!"

"Put her in chains and get her out of here before she starts a panic! I want to my city on lock-down, no one leaves unless I give the okay!" The King ordered "Recall every ranger, soldier, and labor if Arthas is bringing a war we need to be ready for him."

"Father we need her." Kael'Thas said now.

"Make your own tea son." He said angrily at his son as servants helped him with his armor.

"That's not what I meant." Keal'Thus replied.

"Keal'Thus, I know that brave men and women can change fate, but if the worst were to happen I need you to lead our people out of Silvermoon." He patted him on his shoulder, "I know you will keep them safe."

Keal'Thus shook his head, "I have no idea where to start, where to go, if it's really hopeless then come with us, and we can make a new kingdom elsewhere."

Anasterian looked at both sides of his hands, "I am too old, son. If the Sunwell goes, I go, she told me that I would die with something rich men need, something fouler then the Twisting Nether, and something greater than the god's combined. I think it was my will to fight."

"Of course it is father." But Keal'Thus knew the answer was actually 'nothing', and she left out 'we all take to our graves', but it gave his father hope.

"Anyone that is too afraid to fight leave now with my son, but know this; that you're fathers, mothers, young sons, and daughters will die if Arthas is to be successful!" The king explained.

Keal'Thus left as his people prepared for war and went down to Telavani's cell. He saw her there laughing and crying,"I know you could get out of there if you wanted too." Keal'thus said.

She sat in her cell holding her knees, , "I don't want to see, I don't want to see. La la la, shadows please show me something else, anything but this!"

She ran towards Keal'Thus and grabbed his robes threw the bars, "Please Keal'Thus you have kill me, the guards won't do it. It has to be you!"

"Why are you in prison, I know your power, there's no magical barriers, free yourself." He ordered.

"I can't uses the shadows anymore, they shows me things I don't won't see." She cried.

"What do you see?" Keal'Thus asked.

"Poking, killing, building, stealing, breaking, every time I close my eyes I see Arthas armies changing are women and child into undead, corrupting our lands. But I know those areas, I grew up in those places and played, but I see what the Lost One sees. I see Arthas's face clearly, he's five or six, and a thousand in green, but his army and the things he builds are fragmented like children toys. Our people are toys as well, but I recognize their voices, there screams. Sylvanas Windrunner gives him trouble, but she is a single bee trying to stop a bear."

"How do you know about her?" He asked suspiciously.

"I would like to read her fortune, she glows with forbidden love that she should chase, but she can't. I can't tell her to run away, I'll never be able to tell her anything. Kael'Thas it too painful please end it!"

"You can see him coming? Do you know which path that's clear? Tell me!"

Telavani laugh out loud, "Still with the royal upstart attitude," She regained some composer, "still curious and willing to learn I hope. Then take this, you must leave, rather or not you take my life you must walk away from me. I am not a power conduit that will prevent all death, I am a path to madness, let this first and only lesson I give to you: There is some power in this world and others that you MUST walk away from, because it will destroy you. Slavery and happiness do not dwell in the same house."

"Telavani stop! You said it once that you saw many visions of your brother death, what was his name?"

"Lachance, it meant 'good luck', he is my twin, but our parents told us we were a year apart. He was a disgrace because he didn't have magic, but I miss him so, I shouldn't have told him that he was going to die so many times, I was too worried, to overprotective, and I drove him away." she hit the bars she was leaning on.

"And yet you know he's alive don't you." Kael'Thas asked.

"When he would stare into the night sky I would see the stars even if I was in my room. He doesn't want to take up arms, he feels how I feel. We should run for our lives."

Kael'Thas crossed his arms, "He is a coward?"

Telavani grabbed him by his robes and pulled him into her face, "HE IS WISE! WITH OR WITHOUT MY WARNINGS, I DON'T TRUST THE SHADOWS WHEN I SEE HIS DEATH!"

Kael'Thas looked down at her, "Yet you trust them now?"

Telavani let him go, and turned the other way,"I... " She took a deep breath, "The meat of enlightenment is delicious and enriching to the mind, but each bite is heavy and bulking. I may be biting off more than I can chew and throwing up madness and riddles. Maybe this vision isn't true."

"That's a disgusting metaphor, but maybe we should take it one bite at a time. In your visions did you ever see me kill you?" Kael"Thas asked.

Telavani looked at him, "No. I hoped though. The shadows show me things that seem unavoidable, I thought now would be the time to take action for myself. "

Kael'Thas put his hand out, between the bars, "Did you ever hope for children and a man you love?"

Telavani put her hand over her face,"No Kael'Thas, don't do this."

Kael'Thas reached farther in, "Because I would never kill you nor would I leave you to die."

Telavani shook her head, "No don't say it, please don't say it!"

"Because I love you Telavani." The word made her fall to her knee's

"It's a lie's," She yelled, "Why?! You're mad, I can see you slipping every day, you keep falling into madness every time I see you, every time I speak to you, will you ever listen to my warnings. I love you too but the Lost One's will take me away from you," She touched his hand, "and if I don't die soon the Lost One's will make me kill you. Losing you would be more painful than death, more tormenting then Frostmorne." She leaned into the bars with his embrace.

"Stop trying to push me away Telavani, why are you afraid of love, of madness? What is madness, what is love?"

"Baby don't hurt me, don't hurt me no more." Telavani laughed while tear's still falling from her face, "The Lost Ones are laughing and the shadows are breaking into song. I can't see the invasion anymore, I may be speaking in rhyme, for quite some time." Telavani was still laughing historically.

"Telavani this isn't a laughing matter I'm trying to be serious with you. I do love you."

"I don't know, you're not there, I give you my love but you don't care." (Haddaway) Telavani sang and danced. She disappeared into nothingness and reappeared behind Kael'Thas, it didn't scare him as much as it usually did. "Dance with me, I want be your partner can't you see." (Orleans) she bowed putting out her hand and still speaking in song.

"See this is what I love about you," he took her hand she lead him in a dance, "What do the shadows show you now?"

"The music starting, night is calling, and I am falling. Can you see, can you look, is it rotten and covered in goot?"

"I… " Kael'Thas looked around saw all the purple butterflies that surrounded her, strange music of common tongue but sounded delightful, there were crystals lights of rainbow colors, and her smile, the light that shined behind her back. But something cold was behind him. He turned his head but Telavani held his face in place.

"Please my love, don't look."

"What's wrong, where have you brought me?" He asked confused.

The sound of music faded, and it began to get cold. The prison cell begin to fall in shambles around Telavani's face, "I can get us out of here, but you mustn't look, you love me don't you?" She relieved him.

He nodded, "I do."

Telavani smiled, "Just look at my face, you can see your future with me, we don't have to trust the shadows."

"He doesn't love you Telavani, he just wants your power. Just like your mother and father, just like everyone did." A high pitched voice said.

She looked around, "No, we can make our own future now, we don't trust you anymore, you couldn't take my brother and you won't take him. Look behind me, you can see the Light right? The Light will show you what's really there."

Kael'Thas only saw darkness, "Telavani, I don't see anything, just you."

Telavani nodded, she did smile, but she had worry, something he never saw in her before, "Then keep looking at my face don't take you're eye's off me, and listen to my voice."

"What is yours but others use it more than you do?" She smiled but it wasn't her usual smile, she was trying to reassure him.

"I don't know." His mind was blank.

"A name" She smiled and nodded. Kael'Thas wanted to smile but he couldn't.

"What is born each night and dies each dawn" trying to reassure him again.

"I don't know." he answered, still blank.

"Our dreams." She nodded.

"The person who builds it doesn't need it, people who buy it doesn't want to use it, and the person who uses it doesn't know he has is, What is it?" Telavani had a look of dread in her eye's.

"I don't know Telavani I'm scared, please tell me what is behind us?"

She looked up in fear and Kael'Thas looked behind himself as well, he felt a strong grab by a giant of a man with black armor and white hair, he pulled out the sword on his back and pointed the end an inch away from his face. He knew what it was 'Frostmorne' "A coffin." Arthus spoke.

He thrusted it forward into Kael'Thas neck and a flood of memories came over him. Demons, Naga, his people eyes changing with a growing hunger, blue creatures that walked on two legs that he didn't even know, but spoke. He saw great pain and but great power, but he loses it, betrayed but his love Telavani. She's takes everything and any from him, completely un-moving and unfeeling, healing the large number of forces that kill his partners in ambition. He is left last, and these traitors take his clothes, weapons, head, and they leave. Then he see what Telavani sees, something like a game of chess but with a bigger playing field, Arthus is one of the pieces and he kills Sylvanas Windrunner and raises her as a Banshee that also looks like a queen chess piece. The vision ends there but he wasn't in Telavani's prison cell, he was right outside it. His father and troops were getting ready for battle and Telavani was being taken away. Kael'Thas stepped near Telavani's cell again and he looked at her and was still saying to herself, "I don't want to see, I don't want to see."

He opened the door and dragged her upstairs where a large number of scared high elves were and threw her on the floor, "This priest of the Night Elf goddess Elune knows a way we can all escape with our lives, but she won't tell me or anyone else!"

"No, this isn't happening, I'm going to wake and this will all be a terrible vision," Telavani looked up at Kael'Thas, "Kael'Thas, what are you doing, I don't want this." Telavani got up and put his arms around him, "I need to tell you something, my Prince, please listen to me this time, I love you and I know you love me too. So if you share any of that love, kill me, this path, this will destroy us all!" But his affection was not returned.

"Telavani what are you doing here, why aren't you fighting, they need your magic." Telavani let Kael'Thas go and responded to the voice with fear in her eyes.

"Don't, stay away from me." She pleaded but the high elf stepped forward with a child asleep in his arms.

Kael'Thas looked at his face, it was the same as hers, but with masculine features, "This must be Lachance." Kael'Thas walked over to him, he grabbed him by his neck dragged him toward Telavani, and took him to the floor, "You're name means 'good luck' right. Is that your daughter over there, blonde like me, but there's a striking resemblance of you both."

"Screw you, spoiled Prince." Lachance spit. Telavani tried to aid the unconscious girl on the floor.

"Tell me Telavani did the shadows show you this, did you see this as your brother death?" Kael'Thas cackled.

"You have broken my heart Kael'Thas Sunstrider, I did see it, but I didn't believe it! I never thought you could do this and my brother has always slipped between deaths fingers." Telavani claimed.

"Well he won't slip this time." He charged up a fire spell, "A pyro blast should kill his one, but the girl, I'm thinking ice, much less painful. Five seconds, Telavani."

The crowd in the back pushed her, "We just want to escape with our lives, tell us if you know the way out, help us."

"Time's up, Telavani." Keal'Thus claimed.

"Wait!" Telavani put out his hand, "Please, but don't kill him. I will lead you all out of the forest, but he is more mad then I, and will lead you down the path of you own destruction, and the good ones of you, the ones that don't follow, will be controlled by the Lost One's for their own entertainment. Death would have been a gift; Frostmorne would have been the lesser. Shadows cannot be changed without Light!"

"She's mad, crazy, Lost One's?" The people yelled, "What is she talking about? Kael'Thas, can she really lead us out of the forest."

Kael'Thas stood up off of Lachance's back, "Oh she can, I've seen it, but she has a much better view of the battlefield. Tell us shadow-priest."

"We have to burn a path through those trees, that way." Telavani ordered.

Keal'Thas started casting fireballs at the tree's and so did the other elves that could do so. Lachance ran over to the girl and picked her up, Telavani hugged Lachance from the side, "I missed you so much brother."

"I know. I missed you too, would you be surprised to know that mother didn't make it?" Lachance stated.

She looked down, "No, but who is this girl you're carrying?"

Lachance laughed, "This is Perfectia Dawnlight, she's my daughter, I just found out." Telavani looked down on her.

"The King said the children were going to die if Arthas was successful, just leave her she's dead weight!" That got the attention of Kael'Thas, he looked over at the three of them and was about to say something.

"She's is the daughter of Kel'Donas Dawnlight, do you really want be the one to explain to her why her only daughter is dead in the woods, if he isn't!?" Kael'Thas looked away and continued burning trees down, Lachance looked down at her, "Please just let me have this time with her."

Telavani touched her head as she breathed, Lachance moved her away, "Don't sister. I don't want to know, just let me have some hope that she'll make it."

Telavani put her head down, took a dagger from one person's bag, and put it in her brothers without him noticing, "I've never been able to see your death, brother, but she'll need you to keep her alive, and I think you'll need her to stay alive as well, but you should run once we clear the woods."

Lachance rolled his eyes, "What no riddles?"

Telavani smiled, "Nope just big sister advice now." She patted him on the head.

Lachance sighed, "Come with me then. I don't know anything about raising kids."

Telavani looked at Kael'Thas burning the trees down, "He'll never going to let me go, not now anyways, I've shown him too much."

Lachance looked at his sister; half smiled, and shook his head, "How could you fall for a guy like that anyways?"

Telavani laughed, "Your sister's mad remember?"

Lachance looked down and looked at her, "I will find a way to free you from this, I promise."

Telavani smiled, "I know brother, regardless of what the shadows show me I will continue to have mad hope as well."

Kael'Thas burned down most of the trees that lead to a pathway to the ocean. All of the big boats for sailing had already fled but all the fishing boats were left behind. Kael'Thas looked to the horizon for left over sail boats, there was one about a half a mile out, but Telavani said not to bother with it. All the elves picked up boats and rowed out into the sea. Kael'Thas got into the one of the boats and began rowing, but really couldn't get the technique of rowing. "Telavani, would killing you made any difference to me if I had done it when you asked me to." Kael'Thas asked frustrated.

Telavani rolled her eyes and got into the boat. "While I can see things most people can't, no one can see their world beyond there death, but I imagine that your father would have been cross with you and sent you away, then sent letters for you to come back, but it would have been too late." Telavani stated. "But if you try to kill me now, I will defend myself."

"I wasn't suggesting that I would, it's just you're not speaking in riddles anymore, have you lost your connection to 'the Shadows'?" Kael'Thas asked.

"I don't need to commune with the shadows to see what will happen next, besides I need to devote myself to 'the Light' now that the sunwell has been corrupted. These people will need the Light more than ever when there hunger pains start setting in." Telavani explained.

Kael'Thas said finally getting the rhythm of rowing, "We have some rangers with us that can fish."

Telavani laughed, "Every wild animal and fish has fled, been corrupted, or has been frozen solid, but actual hunger will be the last of concerns, Kael'Thas."

Kael'Thas stopped rowing but they were moving out to sea fairly fast. "Actual hunger, what danger will we face?"

Telavani held on to her chest and shook her head.

"Is it the Lost One's?" Keal'Thas asked.

Telavani looked at Kael'Thas and half smiled, "No, they don't know we're here, but how long has it been since sunset?"

Kael'Thas looked out to the sea where the sun was, the last of its light was starting to go. "A few minutes, we could have taken a boat large that could have taken us anywhere in the world why are we using small boats."

"Have you ever used a row boat before?" Telavani said displeased.

"No." Kael'Thas answered.

Telavani crossed her arms and put one hand on the said of her head, "This will be a learning experience."

Keal'Thus stopped rowing, "Will we'll be drifting to Northrend at this rate and what if we run into that damned maelstrom? This will all be for nothing."

Telavani rolled her eyes and sighed, but she put her hand on her chest took quick deep breathes like she was struggling to breathe.

"Telavani are you sick? If you have to throw up don't do it on me." Kael'Thas demanded.

Telavani let out a loud laugh that got the attention of the other elves in there small boats, "The time has come, " Telavani said, "To talk of many things: Of shoes—and ships—and sealing-wax—Of cabbages—and kings—and why the sea is boiling hot—And whether pigs have wings."

In light of everything that had transpired a few elves in neighboring boats repressed a laugh including Kael'Thus, "Glad to see you're back to your old self." he said sarcastically.

Telavani eyes were glowing purple, "The Light will not take back this one as easily as she hopes." There was a deep voice coming from her mouth but Telavani's voice could be heard though it as well.

"Keep your voice down. No more visions of dread, we just need to survive now." Kael'Thas was startled and there were other elves watching from the boats.

"How is this?" Telavani didn't move her mouth, she put her hands on her lap and looked at Kael'Thas, "Don't say anything king of the High Elves. I can hear you just when you think it." Now it was just that one deep voice in his head.

"Who are you?" Kael'Thas asked in his head.

"N'Zoth, Enemy of the Titans, Old God, I'm been called before, and you are closer to my home then you might think." While her mouth didn't move Telavani's body and face made expressions as N'Zoth spoke.

"I've never heard of you, should those names mean something to me. If we are trespassing then I am sorry, but we are fleeing a war zone. "

"Yes, the one that will bring order to this world, it sickens me." N'Zoth crossed its arms.

"If Arthas sickens you, why didn't you stop him from destroying our city?"

The N'Zoth let out a laugh that made Kael'Thas's ears hurt and head ache. "Sorry about that, I don't usually do this." It said. "Your people are devoted to the Light and your cursed Sunwell is a bane to my power. Not my Telavani though, while I did enjoy sharing the sunwell with her, I find my own form more pleasing. "

"So you're on Arthas's side then, you command undead like him?"

Telavani possessed body didn't sound like any being of higher power, it was still using Telavani's voice but amplified. "No, many of my creations have sided with Arthas and no longer devote themselves to me. If the visions I've shown Telavani come true, if all life is cleansed from this world. My maker will not be able to take this world, nor will he be interested in it."

"What vision can you see of me?" Kael"Thas asked.

"You're always straight to the point aren't you? Never care for the bigger picture, I wouldn't tell you anyways even if you asked, but I will tell you this: If Arthas achieves everything he desires, if all life is snuffed out by the darkness and I reach my maxim potential I will not be enough to defeat the Lich King and his armies. I will need to free my brothers and I don't want to do that. Arthas will be defeated with our combined efforts but we will start fighting like we always do and for what? A world already ravaged by the undead with no memory of the past, or no sense of the future; boring, uninteresting, painful. Even if I'm the one who wins, I will die of boredom from being in that world. Frankly, I like tormenting the living and being the vestal that keeps the balance of light and shadows."

"What are you?"

"I'm the finger down your spine when all the lights are out; I'm the name all fear but will never know; when you are stricken with hopelessness I make you laugh, and everyone wants to know where I came from."

"I see where she gets it from; you're the madness that takes her from time to time."

A tentacle slivered on the side of the boat and shook it side to side and went back in the ocean, "Something like that." Telavani body smiled,"With the sunwell destroyed I can protect you from the maelstrom but everyone else will die."

"Why did you tell Telavani to use small boats then, we could have taken something that could carry more than two people."

Telavani's body stood up and put her hands in the air and a purple aura filled her hands and eyes. The waves became violent moving the boats farther out into the ocean and the other boats started bumping into each, then they were connected with tentacles. The other High elves panicked and started casting spells that would burn the tentacles off, "Don't do that, it's here to help." Kael'Thas ordered.

"What is this, my prince?" The other high elves started to ask as they were all drawn closer in the water.

"Whatever Telavani promised would save us is here now." Kael'Thas stated.

"How could he just run away and let his father die?" A voice said.

"What did you say?" Kael'Thas demanded.

"I said how is this thing going to save us?" The high elf in the closet boat said. "What is that shadow priest doing, I hate priest that use shadow power even a little, is he really listening to her. Does he really think he's fit to be king?" Kael'Thas realized that he could hear the thoughts of his rescued elves.

"Are you doing this N'Zoth?" Kael'Thas asked in his head.

"Only a little," N'Zoth used Telavani's voice, it was the only way he could tell N'Zoth voice from the others. As the tentacles brought more boats together Keal'Thus heard more voices of fear, panic, doubts that Keal'Thas will be able to fill his father's shoes, that he was a coward, a spoiled brat, that the shadow priest had set a trap, that this was a set up for him to become king, and they should kill him and the shadow priest once they get to shore.

"STOP! Stop this all of you!" Kael'Thas shouted.

"Keal'Thus is this what you thrown your alliance to? This creature?" other voices in the surrounding boats agreed.

"Did you just say that out loud?" Kael'Thas said in disbelief.

"Yes, are you deaf? Old God of the Sea, The Black Goat with seven eyes, the Drowned God, you've damned us prince Kael'Thas, that bitch will be the death of us all!"

"Wait, he said, he was going to help us." Kael'Thas pleaded.

"Did you give your soul to save your skin?" One of the elves said out loud.

"This was not my plan, I knew nothing of N'Zoth, but the shadows have shown-"

One of the elves interrupted, "The Light would have prevailed against Arthas it wasn't for you. If that bitch wasn't being passed around by you and your fathers' bedsides the Sunwell might be free from corruption!"

"Talda?!" A woman's voice in one of the nearby boats yelled. "No, he's not breathing. Taldaram please wake up." She breathed into her son's mouth.

Telavani looked over at the boy, "While he lived, something cannot be parted from him, it must be lifelong inside him, locked within his beating heart. " Telavani put her hands down, spoke out loud so all could hear, and she walked out into the sea and stood on the surface of the water.

"Kael'Thas kill her. It's another spell from her corrupted god." An elf asked.

Kael'Thas held his hand out. "Wait, it's a riddle."

The elf shook his head and drew his sword, "We don't have time for that right now, our children are dying and we could be next. We have to kill her if we want to survive."

"It seems a shame, " Telavani said and walked toward the elf with his sword out, "To play you such a trick, After we've brought you out so far, and made you trot so quick!" Kael'Thas didn't say anything, the elf raised his sword to strike, "The butter is spread too thick!" Telavani said.

The tentacles started to pull the elf's boat undersea; the elf with the sword was taken under water as well "Stop, Telavani!" Keal'Thas shouted as he charged up a fireball and blasted it at her.

Tentacles rose up from the sea and took the blast and went back into the sea, Telavani laughed with the same predator smile she had at times, but she shrugged and shook her head. Few people were burning off tentacles off their boats and some of the elves started casting spells at Telavani of various colors. Tentacles rose up like before to block the spells, but whenever they took whatever damage the tentacles went after the boats that cast them. After 45 seconds the elves stop casting spells at her, and the elves started trying to get into other people's boats. The woman holding her dead son was in the ocean, she reached for Kael'Thas's boat, and started tipping it over. "My prince, please you have to let us on!"

"Your son is dead my lady; you have to let him go." Kael'Thas demanded.

Telavani picked up the boy and put him on the boat. "Thank you." The mother said.

Keal'Thas leaned to the side of the boat to let her on but tentacles wrapped around his arms, upper torso, and lifted him up in the air. Telavani left up the mother and then both of her arms were in the boat Telavani pulled a dagger from her pocket and slide the blade across the mother throat. The mother held onto the cut. Kael'Thas tried to stop Telavani but tentacles held him from moving. Telavani grabbed the boy by the hair and placed him at his mother throat and the boy began drinking her mother's blood in large gulps. The mother tried to pull the child away but the child held on to her head until she was dead, and she fell into the ocean floor, "Blood." The boy said and opened his red glowing eyes.

The boys eyes were glowing red and fangs had formed as well. "Look, the boys alive." The other elves started to take notice. "Our blood can save our children."

"No." Keal'Thus said still wrapped up, "Take a closer look at this boy, he's a monster."

"Mother, where's mother?" The boy said.

"You killed her you stupid boy." Kael'Thas yelled. He looked at the other boats that held his rescued high elves. Some of them were cutting themselves but some of them were killing one another. The elves were being killed as they tried to get into other people's boats screaming, 'we need blood if we want our children to survive.' He remembered the human mage that concocted that damn elixir, John Ace, and the two Silver Hand humans that killed so many civilians, that he had to be called to deal with them personally. Now his people were going to start killing themselves, slaves to themselves, as his father once said. "NO! They can't drink the blood!" Kael'Thas yelled.

Fire burned in Kael'Thus's eye's and hands so much that his magic gloves that were used for magic started to melt off. Kael'Thus looked at the tentacles that binded him in place and they ignited on fire. Kael'Thas raised his hands in the air and the air around him became cold. He let go of his next spell, freezing the ocean floor that all the boats that were floating were frozen in place, and some of the elves that were in the ocean died as well, while the tentacles froze and then broke into pieces from their weight. "LISTEN TO ME!"

Everyone was stopped, Kael'Thas stepped out onto the ice, "My name is Kael'Thas Sunstrider Prince of the high elves. I have been a coward, a fake, a manipulator; I was ready to leave my home with my father but he chose to stay, but this, this is not what our kingdom is, this is not what our people do. If you have seen what our blood does when it is ingested, you would know that your children will never be the same." Kael'Thas grabbed the only living high elf boy by his neck, brought him to the middle of the ice. "Look at him!" The boy just looked around scared, "Red eyes, fangs, he's become a bloodsucking parasite."

"Kael'Thas he's just a boy." Telavani pleaded. N'Zoth's voice wasn't there anymore.

Kael'Thas looked at her in shock, "Don't give me that, shadow witch! You cut that boy's mother throat."

Telavani looked at to the other elves, "To show you how to save your children's lives. Look how many of your people you've killed under the ice."

"You're insane." Kael'Thas pointed.

"Duh!" Telavani looked at him and smiled.

One of the high elves was trying crack the ice that held some of the elves that were trapped, but he knew it was too late, he walked toward Kael'Thas with his dagger in his hand, others followed, "Our children are breathing now, our people are died because of you, and you're right about one thing. You are a coward, a fake, and a manipulator. We stop being high elves when the sunwell was destroyed, if blood is what we need then that will be our fate. WE will be blood elves from now on. Your kingdom failed to protect us, your people failed the Light, and you kill your own people with little regard, you are not my king."

Kael'Thas held on to his head, "I saved you, if you would just listen to me those people would still alive."

All the elves took up weapons and started casting spells, "Please don't make me kill you all, it her, the shadow priest. I tried to kill her brother, I did kill her brother, and now she out for revenge, if there's anyone that you should kill it's her. Who is in there, is it you, Telavani, or that mad god N'Zoth?!"

Telavani put both of her hands on the side of her face, "Ahhh, look at my eye's Kael'Thas." They were still purple, "I weep for you," Telavani or N'Zoth said, "I truly sympathize. With sobs and tears I sort out, maybe of the largest size, with my pocket handkerchief before my streaming eyes."

Kael'Thas looked around again, the children woke up and started tackling and feeding on whatever living thing they could find on the ice. "Great merciful Light." Kael'Thas said with one hand on his month.

"You had a pleasant run." N'Zoth laughed, she held her arms out, and spinned onthe blood stained ice. "Shall we be trotting home again? I said I like to have fun, and this was scarcely odd, because the others are being eaten, everyone."

Kael'Thas pulled the boat from the ice and put it in the water. Telavani walked down to the boy, whispered in the boys ear, stood up, and said, "Take care Prince Taldaram."

Taldaram smiled, nodded, and waved goodbye. Telavani walked on water like so many powerful priests did, it wasn't impressive to Kael'Thas anymore. "Where do you think you're going?" Kael'Thas asked with a sickened look on his face.

Telavani eyes were still glowing purple and she walked beside Kael'Thas boat, A tentacle pulled the boat to keep with Telavani's speed "I made a promise didn't I, where did you want to go."

Keal'Thas put his head down and shook his head, "Home."

"Silvermoon?" N'Zoth asked.

Kael'Thas looked at Telavani's face, "No my second home, Dalaran, I need to recruit as many of my kind as possible."

N'Zoth laughed, "They won't want to hear that you ran away from the invasion."

Keal'Thus sighed, "We're not going to tell them. If I would have killed you or Telavani, this wouldn't have ever happened, let the pages of history not know of this day."

"Well Telavani will be none the wiser once the sun raises, at least not these events."

"Will you be back during nightfall; if you're responsible for Telavani's visions I think I could use your insights Old God."

"It has been fun Prince, it really has, but this will be the last time you and I speak, whether you receive my insights or not, that is on Telavani. I do love a good tea party with my favorite priest."

"Should I fear these, Lost One's?"

"I'm not worried about the Lost One's so much, they will never know who or what I am, my brothers on the other hand. Let just say I'm looking forward to the plans that will be set into motion if you achieve your goals."

"You don't know for sure?"

"Do I seem like a god with all the answers?"

"You seem to know how to start a blood bath."

"Insanity is easy for me, bravery is when things get complicated."

Keal'Thus shook his head, "That, that doesn't make since at all."

Telavani laughed, "What do you mean?"

"Aren't those the same things."

"Are mania and dementia the same things?"

"No."

"They are two sides of the same coin."

"So are you the cause of shadow, oppose to the light, is there an old god for the light as well?"

Telavani laughed, "You think that I'm some kind of higher power in some kind of inter temporal with the Light?"

"Well aren't you, the sunwell was a bane to your powers."

"The shadows are my life blood but I do need light to survive as well, just like everything in the universe, but light and shadow are not beings of higher power."

"What are they?"

"There places."

"Places? Can I go there?"

N'Zoth laughed with a voice that was deeper than Telavani's voice and the ocean made a thousand small splashes like it was filled with small fish, but there were none.

"What is so funny?"

"I'm the guardian of that place, and I only let in the young, the familiar, and the truly insane, and try to give them insight on where they are and what they can take back, but I'm not letting you in."

"The land of shadows?"

"We call it Wonderland and my creator, the meaning of why I'm alive is to make sure no one gets in, but that place will make you find hidden meanings behind hidden meanings."

"Like what?"

"I can't let any living thing into Wonderland; I can let things from Wonderland into this world."

"The Lost Ones. You brought them in here; this is all your fault. The portal in Azeroth, Arthas, my home, you will be the destruction of Azeroth and for what? "

"Keal'Thus that is only the icing on the cake. When was the last time you wanted to have sex with someone for lust or love, when was the last time you saw an animal having sex or giving birth?"

"I've been in love before, but I've been a little too busy to focus on trivial things like that."

"Busy with what, were you in love with Telavani?"

Keal'Thus laughed, "Heavens no... Well war, ever since the orcs showed up every race had needed to prepare for the worst and for good reason. Even when we defeated the orcs, who could predict warmongers upraising from our once known allies, it still wasn't enough."

"In Wonderland death has very little meaning, everything keeps coming back over and over again, unless…"

"Unless what?"

"You cut off the head, and the more Lost Ones come into this world the more Wonderland rules start to apply. Think about Keal'Thus what would be the point of waging war if death had no meaning?"

"There wouldn't be any point, but people would… Well, I don't know what they would do."

"The answer is entertainment. Trust me, this world will need the Lost One's in order for this world to survive, but that's all this is to them, entertainment, until they get tired of it anyway. Then maybe things will go back to normal. Death will be final, and it will come from more places than a blade, claws, flags, or magic, but disease, accident, neglect, starvation, and malnutrition. That is a world the Lost One's come from, a land of lights where endless rivers of stars run red and white and light up the night sky. Where worlds and dimensions are displayed on every window and structures are built higher than the clouds. Other than that, it is just like this world, but not for long, animals, water, and people. Things are going change in ways you can't possibly imagine."

"How can I stop them from coming?"

"Live out your life peacefully, without war, forget your kingdom, your people, and your plans for revenge, find a wife and raise a family, and focus on trying to feed yourself and them, and live your life one day at a time. Prove that the visions I'm shown you and Telavani is completely false."

Keal'Thus started laughing but it was forced, N'Zoth rolled her eyes and shook her head, "Let armies of the undead corrupt our lands, let a bastard like Arthas steal our very souls, let other races kill and enslave us until we die out, no old god. From what I saw today I know that my people need guidance more than ever, I will restore and re forge my people until no power can challenge us, undead or Lost Ones! You think I should lie down and let my people become bloodsucking parasites, you're no better than Arthas, and when I take back this world, I'm coming after you and this Wonderland, and do you see that in your visions old god?"

Telavani closed her eyes and shook her head, "Kael'Thas where are we, where are the people we saved?"

"Don't play games with me old god!" Kael'Thas shouted.

Telavani fell into ocean water, but she resurfaced, "Kael'Thas what are you talking about how did I get here?"

Her eyes didn't glow with purple anymore, they didn't glow at all like so many high elves eyes usually did. The only light was the stars and the moon, KaelThas helped Telavani get into the boat. Kael'Thas charged fire in his hand and held it close to Telavani, the heat from the flames hurt her skin that she pulled away from the flames. "That's very kind of you, but that's a little to close Kael, are you trying to dry me off?"

Kael'Thas had a blank look on his face, "Telavani why did we take these smaller boats when we could have taken a larger boat?" Not moving the distance of the flames.

Telavani was a bit nervous and held her a hand in front of her face to block the heat, "If we had taken a large boat we would have been attacked by gargoyles that patrolled the shore."

Kael'Thas put out the flames, "Í figured as much." he said.

The real Telavani took a deep breath, "Why?"

Keal'Thus looked out in the distance, "Because we were attacked by gargoyles, but your shadow powers could only save you and I. I don't think your brother made it."

"I see." Telavani smiled and laughed a little, looked at Keal'Thus inquisitively and shook her head.

Kael'Thas looked back at her angrily, "What is it?" he asked.

Telavani met his gaze and half smiled, "I think from this point on, I can accept whatever fate gives me."

Kael'Thas rolled his eyes, "Because in the end you're going to kill me? I wouldn't keep my faith in the shadows if I was you. You think I'm going to keep you around like my father did, maybe fall in love with you, because of a few predictions?"

Telavani clinched her teeth and hit the side of the boat with her hand, "You think I would prefer the company and unyielding attention of a black heart-ed, hot sinking breath, spoiled, unreasoning, unfeeling, hell riser? I don't think so! I would need a better reason to respond then what's currently on offer."

"Then why are you here?" Kael'Thas asked crossing his arms.

Telavani got close his face spitting and yelling as she talked, "You don't know you're own heart, Prince! You think you know mine, there was no method to my madness, you ether obey or you over throw, but you were bonded by the walls Silvermoon and its sunwell. You can only see the tragedy; the whole truth you claim to seek eludes you because you fail to see what's around you."

Kael'Thas was completely un-phased by Telavani's outburst, "Are these more predictions." He asked.

Telavani leaned back and turned her face away, "Madness and destruction Kael'Thas, that's what I offer. Don't ask questions you already know the answer to it's not polite. You must make your survival mean something are we are all doomed."

Kael'Thas put his arms down and leaned forward, "You are finally speaking more direct now, I think I'm finally starting to see, you knew this would happen, everything, but what is worst, you wanted it to happen. You danced around with lies, riddles and skimpy outfits and couldn't just say the words to me or my father."

Telavani looked at Kael'Thas and laughed, "Your father was a 3000 year old baby in a crib. This world is meant for grown-ups: raw, well-ordered, ruthless, and careening on the jagged edge of reality. Self- pitying dreamers cannot survive here, better yet rule. Your father feared the truth, he lived in my shadows and I ruled your kingdom from behind a curtain. His pathetic attempts to reclaim his sanity failed, he just kept retreated into the sterile safety of his own self-delusions, always denying his kingdoms inevitable annihilation." Telavani put her finger in his face Kael'Thas face, "You Kael'Thas Sunstrider, you were well on you way, 'If she can predict the future can she see us together,' yes I did do some digging around that head of yours. I did want to replace that chip on your shoulder you carry around and fill it with my love, I was even willing to die for it, 'Oh, Jannia Proudmore doesn't love me boo hoo hoo hoo.' "

"Shut mouth shadow bitch!" Kael'Thas stood up slapped Telavani across the face.

Telavani held the side of her face with her hand with surprise, "My Goddess, where are you, the moon is shining so brightly but I feel completely drained, my Goddess? I don't know if I can command my powers I had before without the sunwell."

"You should have seen yourself a few minutes ago. You can't use your shadow powers anymore?" Kael'Thas asked.

Telavani shook her head.

Kael'Thus smiled the predator smile Telavani gave him on more than few occasions. He grabbed her by her feet and she flipped into the ocean. Before she could resurface he charged a powerful ice spell and trapped her in a huge block of floating ice.

"I don't need you or your old god; you did always want me to kill you, now you're welcome to your death Telavani Lightwood." Keal'Thas charged a spell and teleported himself to Dalaran.

Lines from: Alice in Wonderland, Alice: American McGee, Alice: Return to Madness, Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines


	8. Chapter 8 Perfectia

Perfectia Dawnlight's Journal

November 25 Light's Hope Chapel, 6:30 am

Awake before my new-found father because he was explaining what happened to the old dwarven commander Thane and Maria last night, a human that was caring for me like I was her own daughter. I'm starting this journal because it was something I always saw my real mother Kel'Donas Dawnlight do. Soldiers of the Silver Hand were pretty sad when they found out what happened to him and what is worst is that they partially blame me for both of their deaths. When I was younger I would wander off into caves looking for strange forms of energy to drink. At one point I was captured by a troll tribe, but it was nice because they had these strange jewels that tasted like drum music. When I was near it I felt a need to dance, but the trolls kept me in a cage and they kept putting strange smelling things in my cage. Like burnt dead animals, and picked fruit. I didn't know what this was called at the time but humans call it eating, it seemed like a strange practice for me, but I didn't miss the Sunwell when I was with the trolls and sometimes they would let me come out of the cage to dance by the fire with them and that was fun. But my mother came with a few high elves and killed them all like the animals they burnt, except they were alive the whole time, they screamed and I cried.

My mother was a powerful mage but she worked a lot and while I saw a lot of grownups with their kids at work I realized why my mother never wanted me to come with her. I kept one of the jewels to remember the trolls but I drank all the drum energy from it. It recharges sometimes if I wander the forest but not in the Sunwell. Being away from the Sunwell is very scary, the Sunwell always sounds like ladies singing and you can taste it all around the city, but when your near it the pain in your chest goes away and it feels like you can breathe easier, mommy always practiced spells that would make the ground shake, make your skin feel hot or would make you have to put on a sweater, lots of high elves were very powerful near the Sunwell. Not me though, and being around it all the time was sometimes annoying, and after a while you don't notice the singing. But being away from it is scary the first time but you find things with energy, like magic from mommy. It doesn't taste like music and sometimes hurts, or mommy's staff, or the priest that heals wounds, which taste like grownup boys humming. I used to taste that when I was here in the Chapel, so much that it made me, and my dad's eyes turn golden orange, but not anymore. I touched something that I shouldn't have, the Ashbringer, at first, I thought it was the Sunwell, it sounded and tasted like it, but when I came closer I ran into undead that I would see the Silver Hand killing all the time, but they didn't attack me. They were running towards the energy and I thought, "Maybe undead need the Sunwell too."

But when I got closer it was just a human man killing a lot of undead, turning them into ash, but the energy felt good like I was drinking the Sunwells water without actually doing it. But then something happened. The man screamed in pain, it tasted like trolls dying but I felt the stabbing pain like I was drinking it, like I would any energy source but with loud screaming and pain, it made my whole body hurt and I felt like I was dying, but I didn't die. When I woke up the ladies were singing again but they were singing a sad song. It whispered that its name was Ashbringer and I saw that the human man that was killing undead was dead, but I could still hear the man crying among all the singing. He cried, "Betrayed by my order." And the ladies sang those words in chorus. I felt sorry for the man and the sword was asking me for help. And then I heard men with deeper voices start to drown out the ladies' sad song, "Justice, Vengeance," and they hummed an angry song like the warriors in the troll tribes. The troll gem I had was reacting to this energy, drumming to the beat of this angry song but I didn't feel the need to dance, I walked toward it seeing it with my eyes glowing green, but it was scary like demons. Demons that want to kill, I could feel that the sword wanted to kill; the sword wanted me to kill. I covered my ears trying to stop drinking in this awful energy, and that's when Thane, Maria, and my father showed up. The sword killed Thane and Maria and was about to kill my father but I grabbed the sword and the screams from the sword were louder than anything I've ever heard before, I felt its energy burning my lungs, my heart, my brain, and threw my skin, it felt like I was going to explode because of so much bad energy but it changed. I don't think the sword wanted to kill me; it changed back like it did before for a few seconds, it healed my body like the sunwell always did. My father pulled me away from the sword. Now here I am.

I can't be the little girl that wanders around in the forest anymore. Mommy's gone, father-Lachance won't tell me but I don't feel her energy anymore, so I need to do things that mommy did.

I can't do magic, but Maria showed me how to use the Light, so I think I'll keep trying to do that.

November 26 High Elf encampment 8:00 pm.

The Silver Hand didn't want to give us a horse even though they came by in a wagon pulled by horses to pick us up to start training to become Silver Hand soldiers, but father wanted to leave the deep high elf forest to find more of our people. I wanted to join but the driver said he could only take me if I could be useful to the Silver Hand. Father-Lachance didn't like that, his yelling tasted like burnt honey paper as he screamed, "I'm your father, your mother entrusted your life to me!"

The Silver Hand soldiers didn't like him anymore, so they gave me a chance to prove myself by casting a healing spell on an injured rat. I moved my hands the way Maria did and breathed in arcane energy like mommy did, but when I cast the healing spell I killed it. I can't seem to use the Light to heal wounds anymore now that my eyes are green. Argent Dawn driver said he was sorry, but I have to stay with Father-Lachance, but he told my dad that there's a small encampment of surviving High Elves, but they don't like humans, so he can only take us so far.

Father-Lachance still cries for Maria, says she was going to be my new mommy, and is unsure what he's supposed to do with me, but I'm smart like my real mommy. It seems like I need to be a mommy for Father-Lachance, but I didn't know why I can't use the Light to heal wounds. Argent Dawn soldiers gave us food for eating. I use to not like eating when I first tried it. Too many colors start dancing in front of my eyes as the food touches my tongue, going down, and chewing hurts my jaw. Health potions are okay, it's just one color the covers everything for a second as it goes down, but cooked food has worms of every color in it and when you put it on your tongue they wanna dance in front of your eyes, very annoying and distracting. But food helps with the pain of being away from the sunwell so I have to get use to the colors, but I haven't felt empty of energy to want to eat anything the whole day, and neither has Father-Lachance. Says we absorbed so much energy from that sword we might not need to eat or seek out other forms of energy at least for a while.

The driver took us to the road that would lead us to the encampment, for the most part the undead left us alone, but I can feel that some of the undead could use arcane magic like so many mages. Father-Lachance goes after them and takes there magic away. Mother told me that Lachance is always unhappy because he cannot use magic like so many high elves, but Lachance could stop a magic spell in it's tracks, maybe because he hates magic. Undead energy taste like dirty melting snow off of a pine tree, I think Father-Lachance was drinking it. I could drink it too but would need something tasting like a blue water song. We showed up to the encampment and their voices tastes like bitter burnt rubber seemly to be resentful and untrusting. They draw bows and arrows and yell, "Leave this place warlock!"

Voices were bitter, so I hid behind Father-Lachance, "I'm not a warlock." He said.

"Those eye's say otherwise." He stated as he walked toward us with his bow drawn, his eyes were still blue like water.

"There's a reason for that. Listen I'm a magic less high elf, I know you rangers don't have as much magic as most high elves, but I can't make a pack with demons, even if I wanted to." He explained with his hands up. I've heard mother use that term "Magicless High Elf" for a lot of the homeless high elves that littered Silvermoon city, but Father-Lachance was a famous explorer, maybe he still was. Why didn't they know him, I wondered at the time, but the High Elves saw me, and asked Father-Lachance what he did to me. Put us both in chains and now we are in their encampment. They took away Father-Lachance's weapons and my book, but I cried and cried until they gave it back.

November 28 High Elf encampment 2:00 pm

Me and my dad have beds now but there is always someone watching us with swords and bow and arrows. Eating and drinking has the strangest side effects I've ever experienced that Maria showed me what to do with. I would get these funny stomach pains, not like a hunger for the sunwell but a need to release something bad, that I needed to sit in a shack with a chair with a hole in it, something came out of me, but it was too dark to see what it was. The first night I stayed with the high elves in the encampment I was covered in this brown paint like liquid, it made flashes of black and white if I got it too close to my face, and that made a lot of high elves upset. I think I remember this happening to me before, but Maria had just recently taught me how to change in and out of clothes myself. Before servants and my mother always changed and cleaned me. They took away all my clothes and wrapped me in a blanket and I spent most of the day naked with only a single blanket to cover my body. I remember on more than a few times I got myself hurt or dirty and my mommy would take me to the sunwells waters to bathe. But these two high elves pulled me to a freezing cold body of water a mile away from the encampment and threw me into the water. Water went into my lungs and I couldn't breathe, it was scary, even more scarier than being away from the sunwell the first time. I moved around but I kept going deeper, I looked up and I could see the sun and bubbles and I sank deeper. One of the female high elves jumped into the water, got me out, and I coughed out the water in my lungs. She washed the rest of the paint off, but the wind still blew, and made me shiver from the cold. Humans said they were untrusting, but these elves were not good people in the slightest. They killed anyone that got to close to the encampment, undead, humans, dwarves, gnomes, and even a few night elves, if it wasn't a high elf they would go after it like some kind of animal, but the smarter ones managed to run away from the encampment. I didn't like these high elves at all; humans and dwarves had always been so nice to us. I wanted to heal them as they were shot down with arrows, but I couldn't. I remembered when I was back with the Silver Hand when someone would die from undead attacks they would burn the body with fire, close their eyes, and say, "We believe that his/her spirit lives on and will continue to watch over us, even as the shadows closes in all around us. His/her light will light all of humanity as long as we honor his/her memory, they will never fade; we are all one in the Light, go with the Light brother or sister."

So, with only a blanket to cover myself I gathered brush and wood from the dying trees and covered their bodies and lit them on fire with the only magic I could muster. As they burned I closed my eyes and recited those words, as I said the words I heard almost a combination of the ladies singing and men humming as the bodies burned, but not like the energy from the sunwell, just the song. It was still nice, so I did it again, and again, I started to hear voices like the man holding the Ashbringer, but they said, "Thank you." and "Go with the Light child." I tried to say something back and I never heard anything back. As I closed my eyes and recited the Silver Hands words, one of the voices said, "LEAVE HER ALONE!"

I opened my eyes and hid my face in defense as a high elf was coming up behind me. She hit me with the blunt part of her weapon, but it bounced off. The high elf looked confused, but this time she used the sharp side of her weapon, but I wasn't afraid as much as I was before. She came down with her sword with all her weight and screamed, "Die demon!"

But she fell back burnt with a fire of golden yellow as I was protected by this clear shining egg, I heard the voice saying, "Run." I ran with my blanket, terrified toward where my dad was being held capture and the shining egg started to fade, but I couldn't find him. The high elf came into the room, saw that I couldn't escape, I thought maybe in chains my dad would be able to protect me from this elf, I could only hold up my hands in defense. The high elf drew her bow and said, "I won't miss this time!"

I was hoping for whatever was able to protect me before could protect me again and I yelled, "I don't want to die!"

She drew her bow as I was crying looking around for something else to come out, and I saw my dad behind her, he grabbed her by her hair and dug two of his fingers into her eyes. She turned around on the ground grabbing onto her eyes as she bled, my dad slammed her head into the ground with his foot and kept it there, "Stop moving or I'll crush your skull like a coconut." He said.

She yelled for help and my dad must of saw more high elves coming because he put his hands up to show he was unarmed, they put him in irons to bind his hands, and one of the other high elves took off their undershirt and covered me with it and carried me to the biggest building in the encampment. And despite all the buildings looking open and elf like this room felt closed in, animal furs laid on the ground with tables of food, and open fires going, it was warm.

The girl that tried to kill me accused me of being a succubus, that's why my eyes were green and that I needed to be sent back to the Twisting Nether. Their leader that I had seen for the first time, a high elf male with white pale skin, white hair, and red eyes, but looked very skinny and sickly and was holding my book, "Do you have any proof of this?" He asked and then coughed.

"Look at those eyes general, they are both corrupted by demonic energy; she was feeding off the spirits of the dead, you remember what happened when we let warlocks into this encampment. What was worst is she managed to summon demons to protect her."

He laughed at her statement.

"Did I say something funny, General. Don't let that innocence fool you, succubus can take whatever form they need to appeal."

The general shook his head, "Yes, but how many demons have you heard about that were able to summon other demons."

"But that spell, I've seen it before, when a warlock sacrifices there 'void walker'." She explained.

The general rolled his eyes, "So there both warlocks then?"

The high elf was hesitant, "No, she's too young, but if the demons were desperate she could- "

"Then this child would be fully grown, if she did take a demon contract, and she isn't. You know of the demonic rituals that took place with the orc warlocks. Also, if you looked outside the encampment every once in a while you'd see that the demons aren't desperate. We are." The general let out a deep sigh, "Listen I know this young girl might have surprised you, but that was no reason for you to try to kill her."

"We kill every day, they are not our people, they're blood elves, and we've never taken in corrupted magic and we never will, we are sworn to protect you Lirath." She shouted.

"Kill her." He ordered

"Thank you, general." The high elf ranger smiled and crossed her arms

The soldiers turned toward us, "Not them, her." He barked.

"Wait no!" She pleaded but the two soldiers holding us ran her threw with swords and she fell to the ground and a guard from the back with an axe cut her head completely off.

"This encampment CANNOT fail, you will keep me protected until I have turned into dust and part of that is protecting my secrets!" Lirath coughed and he stood up. "But she was right about one thing! They know –"

But I had already started reciting the Silver Hand words for the dead high elf that had just died.

"Perfectia? What are you doing?" My dad asked and pulled my shoulder.

"Let her finish!" Lirath ordered, "You two, take me outside." His guards did as they were ordered, held him by his arms, and took the general outside.

When I said, "Go with the Light sister." I didn't need to light her with brush, her whole body took flame and one of the guards walked back into the building where we were.

"The general would like to talk to you both outside." One of the guards said.

We walked outside the building and Lirath was waiting for us holding himself up with a cane, "So since when were you going to tell us that your daughter was a paladin."

"She's not," Father-Lachance stated, "Wouldn't she need training, need to take an oath, wear armor, her mother was a mage, I'm her father but I have no magic, and she knew nothing of the Light until she came to the Chapel of Hope." Father-Lachance asked questionably.

"To be a paladin one only needs to have a strong level of faith in the Light and a strong will to right even the most common injustices." Lirath smiled and thought back, "My father used to say something when he would come by here to see how I was doing. I believed that I was a monster, but he would say, 'The true mind can weather all the lies and illusions and not be lost, the true heart can tough the poisons of hate without being hard. Since the beginning of time darkness has thrived in the endless void but always yields to the purifying of the Light.'(Avatar) So Perfectia. " He looked down on me and got down to my level but struggled a bit. "By the Light that you hold with such strong faith, could you swear to keep my secret for me as long as I live?"

"I swear." And I meant that.

"And one more request, when I die could you send my body away to the Light like you did my fellow high elf." He asked.

"I swear." But I didn't know how long that would be.

"Good, thank you Perfectia." He looked up at my dad, "Lachance, if you tell anyone about this, I'll kill you, slowly and painfully."

Lirath stood up and walked into the building we were just in. The High Elf that tried to kill me had turned to ash and he sat down on the table where he kept his food and invited us to sit. "My full name is Lirath Windrunner."

My dad fell out of his chair, hit the floor, and got back up, "You're supposed to be dead!"

"My full name is Perfectia Dawnlight, nice to meet you." I put out my hand.

Lirath smiled and shook my hand, "A regular greeting is a nice change Perfectia, but most people react the way your father did when I introduce myself. Kel'Donas's daughter?"

I smiled and nodded, "Yep."

"My father tried to set us up when I was of age, but she was a lot older than me, I never thought she would have lain with a magic less high elf." I was a little offended by that, "I'm sorry, I'm sure he's a great father."

I looked at my father eating, he shrugged, and half smiled, "Actually I only found out he was my father a few weeks ago, but he did manage to save me from the attack on Silvermoon."

"So he actually went through with it then." Lirath sighed and shook his head.

"You knew about the attack?" My dad asked.

"Why do you think I'm standing here right now?" he put his hand on his chest and coughed. "Kel'Thuzad brought me back from the dead to use as a bargaining chip. I was a lot more powerful the first time he raised me from the dead, but I couldn't stand being controlled by that necromancer. So, I threw myself from the tallest cliff only to be raised by him again but lesser now."

"Is that why you seem so-" I asked

"Feeble?" Lirath interrupted.

"I was going to say sick." I felt kind of sorry for him and I didn't want to offend him.

"Under Kel'Thuzad's control I was not only forced to do the things he wanted but say the things he wanted. So yes, when Kel'Thuzad raised me a second time he left me by my home free from his control and my father found me in the forest like this. Tried to convince my father that my mother could be revived as well, if the Windrunner family and their army agreed to join The Cult of the Damned, but I convinced him not to." He explained.

"Why didn't you come forward with the truth, why hide?" my dad asked.

"Because we are all one in the Light, the first time I died I was together with my mother, but the second time," He placed one hand on his head, "It wasn't the Twisting Nether but, it was just dark and I couldn't find anyone. I don't want to go back to that place; my thoughts seemed meaningless in that place. I asked my father to kill me, but he said, 'what would my mother say if she found out that he took his only son's life.' " Lirath looked around, "He built this place for me and the soldiers are sworn to protect me from undead, cult members, and anyone else that happens to find out the truth. But since it seems like I have all the time in the world, there will be a time I will come forward with the truth, but it will be on my terms."

"And when will that be?" My dad asked.

Lirath gave my dad an angry look, "You know usually when people take my oath to keep my secret they never ask this many questions, you think this is a game?! I'm hoping that whatever time I have will expire so I never have too. If my sister's found out what happen to me what do you think they would do, all I wanted to do was be a ranger like them, they must know that I died in the pursuit, not this. Do you know what this would do to my family if other High Elves found out that my father's only son was this monster?!." He looked at his hands.

"But your father never saw you to be that way?" I stated.

Lirath slammed the table we were eating at, "I KNOW!" He stood up, "I know, he tried to convince me to let them come, but when the sunwell was destroyed we lost all the children and elders in a few hours but my father wasn't that old, did he survive the attack?"

My dad looked down, "No, he didn't make it, but he wasn't raised as one of those undead. I know that for sure."

Lirath put his head down, I saw blood fall from his eyes but he managed a smile, "Then they are reunited in the Light." Lirath looked up and wiped the blood off his face, "My sisters, they fought bravely?"

"One of them fell on the battlefield, yes." Lirath looked over at my dad but he kept his face down.

"AND?!" Lirath shouted, "TELL ME WHAT HAPPENED!"

"Arthas he- " My dad try to explain what happened, but he was interrupted.

"What does the prince of Lordaeron have to do with any of this?!" Lirath slammed his cane onto the table.

"He can't explain if you keep doing that Lirath. Sit down in your chair and my dad will explain everything, but you're not going to like it, but you're not the only one that is suffering. I lost my mother that day and I nearly died when the sunwell was destroyed." I finally cut in.

"I'm sorry Perfectia, Lachance please tell me everything you saw, I must know everything. I promise no more outbursts."

So, my father explained everything, Arthas, Frostmorne, KelThuzad, Silvermoon, the truth of my mother and me, and even Sylvanas Windrunner, but told him his two other sisters were still alive and well.

He looked like he was in shock, so we left and when we were outside we heard him crying and tiring his throne room apart.

We went to bed, when I woke up Lirath was there, handed me my book, and said, "I put a lock on your diary Perfectia, but I want you to write about yesterday and whatever days find you well. I just need you to cast a healing spell here."

I hid my hands away from him, "But I can't cast healing spells anymore, since I touched that sword, it burns people now."

He took my hands and placed it on the lock, "Yes you can, just don't think about healing wounds or restoring life. Think about the pain we all feel when we lose someone we love."

I closed my eyes and thought about my mother and Maria, "It hurts to think about them."

"Now pretend that this lock is your heart that hurts, breathe and concentrate your magic on it and feel the pain go away." I felt the light of the sunwell was flowing through me again, but it was being held in my hands and I made the ladies sing and it tasted like sweetbread just out if the oven. I let out the magic and the lock came open. It healed my wounds from being chased but burned Lirath, He dropped the book and yelled, "Ouch!"

I dropped the book and I looked at his hand for burn marks but there wasn't any. "I'm sorry did I hurt you?"

Lirath smiled, "It's okay Perfectia, I'm still undead so the Light does not always agree with me."

I hugged Lirath, "The Light will always be with you Lirath, it will never forget you," I looked him in his face, his white pale skin, white hair, and red eyes, "You're not a monster unless you act like one, and you still have family that misses you."

"How do you know Perfectia?" He asked.

"Because I would miss you if you were gone. I know I'm not a high elf anymore, but I want to at least fight for the Silver Hand when I'm strong enough." I stated.

"That seems noble." Lirath said.

"And I need to look out for my dad." He laughed at that. So that's what's happening, I been writing in this book and as soon as I'm done I'll go to bed and wake up and start heading south.

November 28

Still here at the High Elf encampment, my father seems to have little faith in his own abilities, but he seems to take action when my life is in danger. Before we were about to leave the high elf encampment the High elves gave me a sword to defend myself, but it was really heavy. My father asked them not to give me that and tried to hand me one of his daggers to learn sword play, but my High Elf trainer said by order of the General I was to learn to use this blade. So, I held it with two hands and he told me to attack him. I was hesitant at first, the blade was sharp, but the high elf blocked every attack I made with my heavy blade and even tripped me if I put too much of my body weight into an attack or pushed me backwards if my attacks were too weak. Father-Lachance watched and seemed pretty happy and timed how long I could keep attacking without taking a break or without making a mistake. I did have to do exercises with the blade if I made mistakes and that wasn't fun. I remember the high elf tripped me and I scraped up my elbows and chin pretty bad, I tried to use the Light to heal them. He didn't like that, the high elf interrupted my spell by kicking me in the side while I was down, and said, "Don't do that, you can't use those spells until after you're done."

My dad wasn't happy about that, but the high elf put his hand up, and said, "She is going to need to learn how to defend herself with a sword without magic and that starts now."

The trainer looked at me, but I said, "I don't need a sword to defend myself!" I threw the oversized sword on the ground in frustration and put one hand out, "Attack me." I taunted.

He hit me in the head with the blunt side of his sword; even though it wasn't sharp I felt a deep pain, so hard that I rolled around on the floor trying to heal my head. But I couldn't concentrate the magic, or the Light, nor could I use the protection spell I was trying to do on command. So, I could only bleed and cry, "What did you do that for?!" Father-Lachance asked, but he was laughing a little bit.

"I thought she could do it, I think our lesson is over. Perfectia you can heal yourself now." The high elf yelled at me.

"I can't, I'm bleeding, why did you do that!? Daddy why would you let him do that?!" I screamed as I rolled on the floor covering my head.

"I thought you said you didn't need a sword to defend yourself. I didn't know you were going to get yourself hurt." Father Lachance said but I could tell he was still laughing a bit.

I put my hand on the sword and something angry came over my body, I felt the pain of corrupted energy come over me and I recalled when I first touched that Ashbringer. I stood up, casted a spell and I saw the high elf rolling on the floor like I had been a few seconds ago. Words came out of my mouth but there was something speaking words in sync with me, we said, "I was pure once."

I lifted my sword and I was about to kill this elf, but my dad caught my hand and shook the sword out of my hand, "Perfectia stop!"

I didn't know what came over me, but I had green glowing symbols on my arms and chest like the ones on the Ashbringer before it was corrupted, and they hurt like fire. "Daddy, they hurt!" I cried from the pain.

"Could you get her some water and bandages please." Ordered Father-Lachance. The high elf got up, nodded, and took off, I thought I was going to leave that morning, but I spent another day in bed. My dad rubbed me down on the areas that were burnt with cold water, but the pain eventually stopped. I couldn't see anything but a constant shade of green depending on if my eyes were open or not, but my dad told me to keep my eyes closed because they were too bright, I heard Father-Lachance talking while I was resting to Lirath, "You have to get her out of here, Kel'Thazud is coming back to these lands with a full force of his army, I can feel it. And I think he might be in control of commander Alexandros Mograine, the wielder of the Ashbringer." Lirath stated but he sounded like he was in more pain than usual, " Thane too."

"Maria?" My father asked about her.

"A woman yes," I heard Lirath say, "Blaumeux ring a bell?"

"That was her maiden name." I heard my dad kick something over, "How can you do that. What do they want?!"

"You could say I was one of Kel'Thazud's first projects, he had to put a little bit of his own soul into reviving me, and so we've been linked ever since. I don't know when they'll get here though, my first guess was that they came here to establish a foot hold on the Plaguelands, but if Perfectia took something from the Ashbringer when she touched it, they might be coming here for her." Lirath explained. "You need to get her out of here, I will send a few of my rangers to escort you out of the Plaguelands, but they don't know the areas in the east. I think that's as far as they will be able to take you safely."

"She's blind she can't travel." My dad stated.

"You saved her once when she was dying and Arthas was attacking our city, you saved her when a countless army of endless undead broke through Silvermoon. I think a few of Kel'Thuzad scouts would hardly be a problem and besides your daughters has synesthesia, if there's any strong undead energy she will be able to taste it." I thought at the time all High Elves tasted energy and sound, that's why we didn't need to eat.

"Synesthesia? How could- " My dad asked but was interrupted.

"I've read her diary, she talks about tasting sounds and energy and seeing colors when she eats. Sorry Perfectia."

"You gave me a lock for it, so I forgive you." I said that, but I remember my mother always getting angry when I would try to look over her shoulder and read what she wrote. I had my most private thoughts in there though.

"Perfectia when was the last time you ate anything?" Father-Lachance asked me.

It had really been a long time; I hadn't eaten since the day I showed up to the encampment. Also, I was never really hungry for food, and I disliked eating so much since the side effect of eating was so gross, so I just shrugged.

"You have to eat Perfectia. Is there any food on this encampment, soup maybe?" My dad requested.

"No, I can eat solid foods now. I just don't know how to, I mean you guys don't have one of those." I stated but was interrupted.

"We usually just bury it in the ground; those human shacks fill up fast and draw flies." I heard a voice say, a high elf, but his voice didn't taste as bitter rubber as it was before, it was more like melted butter. "There's a crate of apples over there." He stated.

In all the green I saw the red apple and a figment of it in his hands wrapped around it, I saw him throw it towards my dad, but I caught it. "Perfectia I thought you were blind." My father said.

I didn't respond, with every bite a shade of black or gray showed up. I felt it go down my throat and energize me just a small amount. Then light of white and yellow started to take its places but the apple was gone. "I think I'm still hungry."

"But you can see now?" Father-Lachance asked.

"Not all the colors are back but yes." I stated.

"Well there's plenty of food in my chambers." Lirath offered, "Join me for one last meal and let me make up for my lack of manners when we first met."

So, we joined him for one last meal, Lirath talked about happier times he had with his sisters and mother, Sylvanas was so harsh and overprotective of him but she was the only sister that would play 'hide and seek' and tag with him. She would always make time to play dice and card games with him but would never let him win. While his other sisters would always act kind, they wanted him to focus on school, and archery. I talked about my mother and times I would wonder off into the forest. My dad told me about his sister Telavani Lightwood who was a priest of the goddess Elune, but went too far into the shadow side and came back quite mad. He had to medicate her with herbs to bring her back into the world again, but she would have these predictions of the future sometimes, which made her useful to her family and other people. But figuring out the predictions and the crazy was a bit of a chore, so no one listened to her when their father fell backwards in his carriage breaking his neck. He thought it was funny when she kept saying, "The life bones will shake, this chance may be your break." That's why my dad was hardly around Silvermoon and he lived his life like any day could be his last, but there were the problems with High Elf politics, which is why he wasn't allowed to use his family's last name. But there was one thing he liked about her, she brewed and drank tea all the time, she liked dressing up small animals in clothes for her 'parties' and would have the strangest riddles from 'the shadows' as she would say. My grandparents let her serve there guest as long as she didn't say anything. So, my dad wasn't that surprised when he found out I was synesthetic. Said I most likely got that from her. After a full meal I was able to see all the colors and shades again, but my eyes didn't glow as much, so it was kind of hard to find our rooms to go to bed. My eyes usually light up the pages when I'm trying to write, but right now I have to use a torch to see.

November 30th

Two hours before sunrise I could see all colors and my eyes had a healthy green glow to see where I was going. So, did my dad's but I brought a change of clothes for changing, my troll gem that one of the high elves made into a necklace, a small shovel for defecating which wasn't easy the first time, trust me, and a grown up sized sword. This time I wanted to use this sword over one of my daddy's daggers.

"We want to fight, I hope they come, we lost a lot of people when the Sunwell was destroyed and we want something more than a few mindless undead." One of the high elves said.

"Two of you will go, anymore and you'll attract too much attention." Lirath ordered.

I felt my father's hand and he carried me on his back and moved without making a sound, the other two weren't so graceful. Two hours of walking I felt something that tasted funny, like sour milk and peaches, not completely foul but odd.

"Perfectia do you feel something?" My father asked taking notice of my movements on his back.

"I taste something, Father-Lachance." I stated.

"You don't have to call me that, it's just dad, daddy or father."

"But you said your title was 'librarian' and you were my 'father' or 'dad', is that your new job now?"

"It's not a job, it's, well it's, your mother was a 'mage' right?" He asked.

"Yes of course, we all have mothers how do you think the baby would come out. Mommies have to have babies whether there mages, hunters, or librarians."

"Well fathers have to be fathers too, once the babies are out, too."

"What do they do?" I asked.

"They protect you from danger, make sure you're near the Sunwell so you can grow up healthy and strong, and teach you right from wrong." He explained.

"Mommy and her servants always did that. Then how come you weren't around to do that, mommy always called you 'librarian' Lachance or 'explore' Lachance."

"Your mother never…" He stopped for a second, "Your right, being your father is my new job."

"Does it pay well?" I asked.

Father-Lachance laughed, "I don't know, I work for you, but I couldn't be happier working for free."

I was relieved, "Oh good, cause I don't have any money."

One of the rangers drew an arrow and shot an undead in the shoulder, "I thought you said the girl could sense them before they came." She drew her swords and the boy ranger drew swords as well.

"I know what I look like but it's not what it seems." He spoke and pulled out the arrow.

"It talks; oh, I've been waiting for this." The high elf started to attack crossing swords with the undead with their own.

"Wait maybe we should listen to what he has to say!" But the High Elves ignored my father.

"Father stop them, he doesn't taste like the others, and his energy sings." I pleaded.

My father grabbed a handful of hard dirt, I let go of his shoulders and he threw it at the boy ranger. There must have been rocks in it because he lost his sense of direction as it landed on his head. The other turned to face him and he put opposite side of his dagger in the ranger girls eye and she screamed out in pain. "Lachance what are you doing?!" she screamed blinded. The undead put his sword behind him.

"I'm sorry; please understand I mean you no harm. Thank you Lachance but I think I could have handled them myself." He stated.

The boy ranger drew his arrow and pointed it at the undead, "Then explain yourself quickly, I have another one waiting for you too blood elf." He ordered.

The undead put up his hands and explained, "I fought Arthus on that terrible day he came to Lordaeron and once raise I killed my brothers and sisters of the Silver Hand and even told him where more citizens could be hiding. But as we passed the farm my wife and daughter lived I was able to keep my mouth shut, but then her kind heart led her to the Chapel of Light as Uther died. I thought I was going to be forced to watch her die, but there was one undead, the one that led her to Arthas. He killed dozens of the mindless undead that threaten to kill my wife. He was able to object, argue, reason, and protect her. I realized that when it comes to matters of the heart Frostmorne has no control over you, I was able to leave Arthas's army and be with my family."

"Okay, but what are you doing here?" The boy high elf asked.

"I'm still controlled by the will of my heart, death knights on horses are hunting you and I can't stand by and let them take you. The roads are not safe, but the forest is littered with lesser undead. I can protect you from them." The High elf put down his bow.

"What's your name?" I asked.

"My name is Sir Zeliek, I'm undead, but I'm still a paladin of the Light." He said with a bow.

"Like me." I replied.

"You seem a little too young to be a paladin, but I sense something about you, and I can see you're carrying a sword so I guess that makes you closer than most kids your age. What's your name?" He asked.

"I'm Perfectia, that's my father, and those two…" I said but was interrupted.

"Don't worry about who we are undead," She shouted, "You caused all of this, I won't exchange pleasantries with you."

Something came over me like something slamming into my head, and the marks on my face and skin started to glow and burn again, "Daddy?" I looked up at him, showing him the marks.

He looked down at me and was shocked, "There coming, we need to move quickly."

"I've been waiting for this, let them come. My arrows are itching for…" The boy high elf claimed.

Sir Zeliek put his hand out and interrupted the high elf, "No, there to powerful and there on horseback we won't be able to out run them, hide in this tree. I'll cover for you."

My father picked me up and took me where Sir Zeliek was and he boosted me up into the tree. My father was able to jump up to a high branch without him and the girl high elf grabbed on the smaller low branches, but they broke. I saw the male High Elf looking out in the distance, "There here." He said.

He ran away but I saw Sir Zeliek take off his sword and slam it into the boy High Elves head making a loud cling sound making him fall over like a sack of potatoes. But the girl was dragged away by an unseen but strong force, I looked out the trees were three of them were and I knew them, it was Thane, Maria but she was wearing a large helmet, probably to keep her head on, and someone holding that awful blade, Ashbringer, I could hear its singing the sad song I heard the first time I saw it in this form, but my skin didn't like this. I tried to hold my voice in, but the pain made tears fall from my face. "You don't see many High Elves in this area." The man with the blade said as he drained the life from her.

Sir Zeliek ran over to where they were, "Good morning horsemen, what brings you to this part of the Plaguelands?"

The man with the Ashbringer threw her on the ground but she was breathing but weakened, "An intelligent undead in these parts, I could ask you the same question." He asked.

"I was part of a small scouting party sent to the high elf stronghold; those two are the last of the hunting party that was hunting us for quite some time now. Only I survived."

"He's lying, if you spare my life I'll tell you-" she claimed.

Sir Zeliek drew his sword off his back and cut the girl rangers head clean off, "That was for the Scourge you killed elf."

The man holding the Ashbringer crossed his arms, "I kind of wanted to hear what she had to say. What is your name, undead?"

"Sir Zeliek." He said with a bow.

"I like the way you handled that blade Sir Zeliek. Not many undead can remove a head with a single strike, as you can see were one short of four horsemen." He gestured toward both of them.

"But Mograine, you said once we found the girl Lachance could be the fourth." Maria complained.

"You know how the Lich King feels about those kinds of relationships Lady Blaumeux. How many undead do you know that can remove a head with a single blow, with a dull blade for that matter?" Morgraine claimed.

Sir Zeliek laughed, "I'm sure you can find someone a bit more qualified for the job, but what is this girl you are talking about?"

"That is none of your business, I recognize that armor, it's from the Silver Hand." Thane claimed.

"So?" Sir Zeliek shrugged.

" 'So' if you just came to the right side, our side, you'd be wearin' Argent Dawn armor, but if you were changed earlier, a Scourge armorer would have given you a better set of armor by now." Thane stated.

"I can be much better suited in this armor trust me," Sir Zeliek smiled, "Even though I serve the Lich King, I can still wield the Light to his means."

"That's, actually, quite amazin' really. Mograine, he would make a good addition to the team." Gaining Thanes trust.

"No, we have to find the girl first; the Ashbringer will never be complete until all traces of its Light are destroyed. " Maria ordered.

"Sorry Thane, but I agree with her, the Ashbringer has been acting twitchy since we got here, even more so now." He grabbed hold of the handle.

"I could help in your search, I thought I saw a small group of elves heading south early last night, they must be half way to Lordaeron by now." Sir Zeliek said, putting us in the clear.

"Then lead the way then," Thane scooted forward on his horse, "Get on the back of my horse, despite what Lady Blaumeux would tell you I'm lightest of the three." He said with a laugh.

"Screw you dwarf." Maria spit.

Morgaine stopped, still having his hand on the handle, "Wait a second, do you guys hear something?"

"If we don't make haste they could make it to those damn liberated undead and they won't take too kindly to us." Sir Zeliek hurried them.

Morgraine put out his hand, "No wait, you three don't hear that?"

"I don't hear anything." Thane claimed.

"It sounds like drum music, it's coming from over there." Morgaine looked straight at us.

The necklace. I took it off, threw it into a nearby tree hoping it would hook onto something, but it dropped on the ground.

Sir Zeliek pushed Thane off his horse and rode toward us with it, "Take it and flee, before it's too late!"

My father jumped on the back of the undead horse and rode it, Mograine and Maria gave chase.

Maria's horse ran faster and was running beside us charging up a shadow spell, "We don't want to hurt her, she just needs to give back what she stole."

My father moved his leg up and kicked Maria in the face; she screamed and slowed down, interrupting her spell. But I could feel Morgaine gaining on us, "Daddy put me behind you!" he moved his body, so I could get behind him. I saw Morgarine raising Ashbringer into the air, I pulled out my sword and prayed to the Light, "Please protect us, protect us like you protected us before."

"I will snuff you out little candle!" Morgaine yelled. I saw Ashbringer's green skull come down, I closed my eyes and lifted my sword to protect myself from the blow and heard a loud cling, and singing, peaceful singing. I heard Morgaine make a cry out in pain; I opened my eyes and I was holding the Ashbringer, not the one with the skull, but the one from before. It was three times my size, but it was so light.

"Daddy look!" I shouted, and he looked

"Perfectia where did you get that?!" He said in delight.

"The Light gave it to me." Also, really happy.

We were gaining some ground against the horsemen, but I touched the undead horse with my Ashbringer, it made a cry of pain and came to a sudden stop, knocking us both on the ground. But this Ashbringer protected us from the fall putting us both on our feet.

My body was still glowing from the runes on my face and body, but they didn't burn anymore, I held out the Ashbringer bringing both horses to a stop. Maria backed away but Morgraine moved forward slowly, "Give that back, as I told my son, you are barely of age to be yielding a sword, better yet that blade!"

He jolted forward, and my father threw something on the ground and in a flash, he disappeared, but I was too small, and I was able to duck under his first attack, I strike his horse turning it to ash. Morgraine fell forward on all fours, "The Light gave me the Ashbringer, not you. It will always protect me." I said.

I heard a scream of pain, I looked behind me, my father slit Maria's throat while she was on her undead horse, and the horse ran off the way we came. Morgaine took this chance and strike me with his Ashbringer. I blocked every hit, but I could feel the Light grow weaker with every strike, "You are barely of age to wield the Light." He said as he striked, "You are barely of age to be yielding the Ashbringer. You are barely of age to be fighting undead, you're just a child, a girl, weak, small, your life will end as all life ends, accept it elf, I will snuff you out and all life starting with the Light you stole from my sword!"

I saw my father distracted by a huge plague-ridden bear that littered the forest, it was closing in on him, he actually looked afraid. I could feel the Light fading from my Ashbringer, then all of a sudden, I was holding the heavy grown up sword I was holding first. "You will submit to the darkness, both of you."

He lifted his sword and smiled, I held up my blade one last time, but I could feel his swords terrible energy burn me again, but the bear that's energy tasted funny like lettuce and salted butter milk. It charged forward and bit Morgaine's arm that was wielding his Ashbringer bringing him to the ground, it ripped it out of his hands, and fling it away. The bear ripped at his face with his claws and put its jaws around his head. Morgraine thrashed at the bear but it looked like the bear weighed so much more then him. The bear had a mouthful of his hair and dragged him into the forest, but his scalp ripped clean off, he screamed a high-pitched scream of pain at his now bald and bloody head. The bear spit it out and ran toward us, changed into a cowman, "This is all just wrong, you have to get on."

He said and changed back into a bear. My dad got on his back and so did I.

"Darkness will take you all!" Morgaine screamed as we rode away. I looked behind me and his Ashbringer had a big chunk missing where he was striking me, he picked it up, looked at it, threw it on the ground, and screamed. I saw Thane carrying Sir Zeliek. I didn't want to think what they were going to do with him, but I would try to figure a way to pay him back for his kindness.

The road south wasn't easy, I was so tired by the time we got to Brill and if it wasn't for Starmaster I don't think we would have made it this far. Starmaster was a cow man called a tauren, he was always a druid, and he was able to vouch for us when we came to the liberated undead Sir Zeliek talked about. I had seen pictures of tauren, but I never saw one in real life, when he came up to us my dad thought he was one of the diseased bears we would sometimes see in the woods, but their energy always tasted like rotten eggs. I could taste them a hundred yards away. We found the farm Sir Zeliek was talking about and told his wife Laura that his husband died a hero, but our journey was far from over.


	9. Chapter 10 Levitius

Chapter 9: Levitius

Father, dad, savor, the one who saved me from my own people, the one that defended me when people called me 'pet', the one that taught me to read and write, to build and design, the one that showed me to use tools, over fist and savage weapons, my father Ko'ragh. You were my father, I was an ogre like you, but I remember the way the other children would look at me, call me names for being different. When I showed them I could make toys from clay and wood, that's when the kids started to accept me as one of their own. You completely supported my gift and gave me more tools to build my skills, to build more things, you were a warrior, but you also told me that I should try to be smart. You found the right ogres and even went to class with me so no one would make fun of me. You helped them help me and learning with you was a gift. Toys were fun to make and to play with and they were fun to show to other children, I hope I made you proud father. I hope you could have been able to tell your fellow warriors about the orc son you were raising; I hope I didn't make you ashamed that I wasn't strong or smart enough to protect you.

Orc, you protected me well enough to never know what that was. I knew what pets were but I remember when I first saw those slaves. There was something about the way they looked, smelled, and the way they looked at me. Their skin was green like mine, they didn't have horns, they weren't tan, I remember seeing that cage the slave traders had going through the city and the people crowding around like a parade. My friend Gnosh said, "Dey look likes you Levitius." Gnosh grabbed at another ogres garb, "Mister, what are those?" He asked.

The stranger looked down at me and picked me up and yelled, "Hey did one of your child orcs get away?!"

I thrashed as he picked me and shouted, "I'm not, I'm an ogre!" and hit him in the face with my Spanner tool. I ran off but the slavers threw a net on me, pulled me making my head impact the floor, and dragged me towards the cage scrapping my skin bloody. I screamed as they picked me up, "I'M NOT AN ORC, LEAVE ME ALONE!"

One of the slavers looked at me, "I's never seen green child orcs before."

Gnosh ran toward me and yelled, "That's not an orc, he's ogre, look at his eyes. They're not red, they green."

The slaver held me up and looked me in the eyes, "Is strange, me sees lots of orcs with different color eyes, never green one though. What is you's name orc?"

"I'm not an orc…" I shuttered.

"NAME!" he shouted, I was frozen with fear and my face was covered in snot and tears.

"His name is Levitius, son of Ko'ragh." Gnosh spoke for me.

The slaver looked at the one driving the shipment of slaves and broke into laughter, "Okay, if he's son of Ko'ragh, I'm a son of Gruul , leave now child or I put you in chains too."

"Give him back, he's my friend!" Gnosh kicked the slaver in the shins and the slaver smacked Gnosh so hard he fell to the floor and making him grabbed his face. He looked at me and I could tell he was mad and trying not to cry, they put me in the cage with the rest of the orcs and took away all my tools.

"Gnosh, tell my dad!" I said and he nodded.

They tied me up with robe, my hands above my head like the other orcs, but they were in iron chains. I remember trying to speak to the orcs but I didn't speak Orcish back then. I tried to say hello in Organ and they kept saying, "Gol'mon.". After that the orc I spoke to spit in my face, I hoped that these orcs iron bindings didn't break. I looked in each one of these orcs eyes, they were all red as blood, when their eyes met with mine they lunged at me, maybe hoping that there bindings would snap off, and they could kill me. As we traveled through the city people threw rocks at us and I managed to get one under my feet. I started thinking about the compounds of stone I had used to make fireworks. I had nearly blown off my fingers when I held an exploding one in my hand, it hurt for days but my fingers were a lot stronger and quicker after that. I grabbed one of the small stones and put it over my head. I felt the powder fall on my head. I laced the rope with the power and grinded it on the iron bar and in a flash my robe bindings were gone, but the spark made a loud enough pop noise to get the slavers attention. "Hey how you get out? I put you in iron now!" he said.

The driver looked back at me, "We got's no kids chains. We not get any money for kid orcs and just look at the others. If he moves they kill him."

The slaver looked at his collection of red eyed orcs, "Wow, dey look like dey want to eat him. Levitius!" I looked up at him, "So that is your name."

"I told you I'm not an orc. I speak Organ." I explained

"Me knows this, but you's speak like a two-headed. Me has some time to think, but you is orc."

"Two-head?" I asked.

"It's rare, but does happen. How old is you Levitius." The slaver asked.

"Ten years old, what grade are you in?" I asked.

The slaver laughed, "Me slaver and captured 46 orc slaves me whole life. But it's illegal to teach slaves how to read, write, or speak Organ."

"I'm not a slave or an orc, I'm an ogre like you." I looked at the orcs behind me and looked back at him, "Look at my eyes slaver. These are monsters."

He looked back at me and looked at the rest of them, "Yous really son of Ko'ragh?"

I nodded.

The slaver looked at his driver, "If he's telling the truth were dead."

The driver looked at him and looked around, "If we let him go now guards will smash him to blood pulp. You still new and I sure other orcs heard of the Anti-Fel Magic Ogre Ko'ragh. If he is speaking the truth we just explain to him that we made a mistake, but if he's dead. Well, I don't want to think what will happen. It's not the first time I heard a slave saying they knew a high ranked ogre warrior from another clan."

"You'll see, my dad will come. Did you capture all these orcs?" I asked

"Two ogres couldn't capture this many orcs in a day, these ones were given to us." I looked around and there were eleven, twelve if you count me, and six on each side of the cage.

"By who?" I asked.

"By other orcs of course." The slaver answered.

"Orcs give themselves into slavery?" I asked.

"Sort of yes and sort of no, when orcs have no uses or not obey orders, they give them to us. We use whips and chains to get them to work, but sometimes they still don't obey." The slaver explained.

"What do you do if they don't obey?" I asked.

The slaver chuckled, "We have to kill them."

I felt some concern, "Can't you just talk to them? I mean they do sound like they can speak."

"Yes they can speak, but they only want to kill, sometimes ogres, sometimes animals, and sometimes other orcs, but always want to kill something, that's why they give them to us."

I looked back at them to making sure not to look in their eyes, I got the feeling they could sense that. A lot of them looked tired and hungry. "How could they kill all the time, wouldn't they kill each other off by now?"

"You sure ask a lot of questions."

"I build things, if I don't something always goes wrong."

"What can you build?"

"Toys, fireworks, carts like this one except smaller, looking glasses, eye protection."

"Any weapons?"

"I made a slingshot one time, I got in trouble though."

Both the driver and slaver laughed, "Could you make traps?"

"I can make anything or fix anything with the right parts and tools."

"I'm not sure we should keep him back there, if he dies we could lose even more, even if he's lying."

"If he's lying about being an engineer then what?"

"Then he's really good liar and we kill him."

"Do you hear that, boy? If you lying you died."

"I haven't lied to you about anything."

"You's an orc, how stupid you think me is?!"

I looked at my green skin and back at the orcs the slaver was holding, I started to accept that it might be true. "Are all orcs like this?"

The slaver shrugged, "Only the ones that drink demon blood."

The driver hit the slaver in the chest with the back of his hand, "Dats not public information."

"What?! They all do sooner or later, make them stronger but also more stupid and easy to catch. Now the hard part isn't catching but training and me likes training. Me hates going out with all the bugs and animals. Covering myself in mud, losing slave traps to animals, here me gets to eat as much as me wants, and just use whips."

"Me thinks all that Fel magic effecting your brain, the brown skin ones is worth more and if we's gets one of them draenei we be set up for half the year. These green red eyes one is property damage waiting to happen."

"How much you think we get for boy?"

"If he's lying nothing, but if he smart as he says he is, me think we should put him to work."

"Could I catch orcs?" I asked.

"Orcs catching orcs, you would trap and enslave your own kind?"

"They're not my kind, slaver."

"My name isn't slaver its Ango'rosh, this is Boss Bo'kar."

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Levitius of the Bloodmaul clan."

Both of them laughed, "Yous use ogre formalities." He put his hand in the cage and I reached for his hand but he grabbed the side of my wrist. "Yous shake hands like this."

I felt the eyes of all the red eyed orcs they screamed and shouted the name "Gol'mon!" and they all started rocking the cage back and forth. The orcs screamed and grunted as they rocked the cage back and forth.

"Ah, boss." Ango'rosh said.

"Don't worry the orcs is secure if they flip the cage guards will put it back on the road again."

"But Levitius not secure, he broke his bindings."

"Shit! Did you have to put him in the back."

"Me wanted to keep an eye on him because we didn't have irons to bind him."

"Don't argue with me get in there and get him out!" Bo'kar ordered.

Ango'rosh ran to the back of the cage and opened the cage while Boss Bo'kar tired to grab hold of the slave chains keeping it from falling over.

"Come on Levitus, walk over here."

"I can't you tied up my feet."

"Well here, cut yourself out" He threw a knife at me but the orc next to me caught it with his teeth. I heard Boss Bo'kar pull even harder on the chains that were wrapped around there necks, but they all pulled back despite the bindings round there neck making them choke.

"Stupid Ango'rosh you stupid, stupid! Get in there a get him out, now!" Boss Bokar ordered.

I heard the orcs gag but the orc next to me had the knife in his teeth and tried to stab me in any place his could find, I moved my body out of the way but he screamed and grunted with every attempt.

Ango'rosh darted with his head down grabbed the orc by the head took the knife from his teeth and put it into the orcs red eye, "Yous better be worth this!" He said.

I heard Boss Bokar let go of the chains around the orcs necks but with the dead the orc on my side the other orcs had more slack on the neck chain that held them together. One of them lunged with their teeth at the back of Ango'rosh neck making him fall backwards. The impact broke the cart in half, some of the wood that held the cage together freed some of the the chains and some of the Orcs, but they didn't go after me. They went after Ango'rosh while he was on his back, Boss Bokar called the guards and he bashed every orc he could get his hands on with his bully club.

A clay cup a that smelled like it had alcohol in it fell at my feet. I grabbed the stones that were being thrown at us. Even though I was just a boy with a weak and frail body my hands were as strong as crocodile jaws. I broke the stone into dust into the clay alcohol filled cup and threw it into the group of orcs. The pot made a loud enough bang to blind and make the other orcs stop attacking. Ango'rosh covered his ear too and dropped his knife. I reach for it, grabbed it and cut the bindings on my legs and I felt everything go red, I had no control over my body but I could see everything I killed. Every orc that was slightly bonded in chains fought or cowered from me as I put the knife in whatever open crevasse I could find. Throat, chest cavity, eye, mouth, ear and the last one over the arm. I never thought about killing anyone, even when the bigger kids that would make fun of me, but during these moments it came so quickly and naturally. I saw Ango'rosh, he was trying to hold his hands out in defense but I raised the knife. I screamed in my head not to kill him.

"LEVITIUS!" I heard a familiar voice say, the redness stated to fade in my vision, I felt myself gain control, "Levitius, my son, put it down." I looked back, I saw you and dropped the knife. You were almost twice the size of a normal ogre.

I saw you grab Boss Bokar, "What is the meaning of this slave trader, why was my son in that cage?!" You demanded.

"Please, it was mistake. We didn't know you had an orc son." Boss Bokar said in his defense.

"He is not an orc!" and you threw the slaver aside.

I looked at the green skinned red eyed orcs that I killed without mercy; I remembered completely losing control, I remembered the redness as I killed, the redness in their eyes, and almost killing Ango'rosh. "FATHER!" I yelled with tears my eyes. You looked like you were going to smash Boss Bokar with your fist but you stopped. "What am I then!?"

"You are my son." You look at me.

"My skin, my eyes, that horn on your head, just tell me the truth, am I a real ogre?"

You looked away, "No."

"Yous can't keep slaves and teach them to read and write, that illegal." Boss Bokar said but you punched him in the face knocking him to the ground, "He isn't a slave, he is my son." You said and was about to crush him under your foot.

"Wait Ko'ragh!" Ango'rosh spoke up as he moved from the wreckage of broken wood and corpses, you stopped, "Levitius is more than orc, he is more than ogre."

"Explain." You said.

"Levitius is hero, when green skinned nearly killed me, Levitius save me."

"He was about to kill you." You said.

"I didn't see that, Boss, did you see that?" Ango'rosh shrugged.

Boss Bokar shook his head while your foot was under him, "No Ko'ragh, your son wants to be a slave catcher. I can teach him." Boss Bokar pleaded.

"My son is a toy builder and soon home builder; I would never let him be a slave catcher. Levitius, we go home now! "

"No!" I protested.

"I am your father and you will listen!" you smashed the floor.

"No, you've been lying to me this whole time. I'm an orc, even if you beat me, I'll run away, and find my own people, and would you put me in chains and keep me as a slave?"

"I would never do that Levitius, you are not my slave." You got off of Boss Bokar chest and walked toward me, "Let me clean you up son and get you something to eat, I will tell you whole truth."

I crossed my arms in defense, "Why should I believe you?"

You let out a deep sigh, "Levitius am I a bad father?"

"No, but why have you been lying this whole time?"

"It was to protect you, if people found out about you then they would make you a slave, I think you know I'm telling the truth. Even now your father is trying to protect you from slavers."

"Yous might not need to do that anymore Ko'ragh." Ango'rosh intervened, "They is plenty of witnesses today that saw Levitius brave deeds, no one would think of making him a slave now. He can do whatever he wants."

"Okay but Levitius is still my son." I finally agree with them and they walked away. And dragged there broken slave cart.

"Dad, I want to be a slave catcher." I said.

"I uses to be a slave catcher too son, it's not a good life. Let me explain some things to you before you make a bad decision." You said.

That's then I was finally a member of the Blood Maul Clan to never be sold into slavery. They put a red tattoo on my arm which hurt a lot but they said no one would think you're a slave ever again, so I dealt with the pain. After going through so much pain that day a needle and ink were the least of my concerns. So you, my father explained everything, and for once you could take me out in public and eat at a local shop. People still looked at us from time to time but no one ever said anything to our faces.

"When I was younger I uses catch orcs and draenei slaves but the orcs weren't like they are today. I was really good at catching draenei I could somehow know where they were hiding." You began to explain.

"What's so special about these draenei." I asked.

"The women are beautiful with skin the color of water and can obey better then orcs once captured. They don't fight nearly as much as orcs and the men have better understandings of how to build and craft weapons and tools." You explained.

"You mean like servants as appose to slaves." I stated.

"That's it."

"Well they didn't like me capturing their people to making them into slaves, they also didn't like the things I did to them when I caught them, and so they capture me for a little while. They use magic on me so I can't track their magic fields anymore. Then they leave me back with my clan but I think they should have killed me. Slaving after that was hard. I couldn't find the draenei anymore so I needed to start catching whole bunches of orcs. The orc women didn't do the things that the draenei did, they wouldn't listen or dance, and they wouldn't build or craft anything. I needed to hit them with a whip or bind them to get them to do anything and I did something terrible to an orc woman."

"What did you do?"

"I make her pregnant."

"How?"

"You'll understand when you're a little bit older, but this is why I don't want you to be a slave catcher. I did terrible things to the slaves I caught, I thought of them less then animals, I don't want to see you do those things too."

"Okay but what does this have to do with me? Was she my mother?"

"No, she hid from me for a long time. I didn't make any of the draenei pregnant so I thought she might have made a baby with another orc, but the baby grew too big and it killed her. When I pulled the baby out of his mother I knew it was my child."

"What did you do with your child?"

"I left him out in the wilderness to die."

"Why would you do such a thing?"

"I regretted it Levitius more then anything, I had hurt so many slaves, so many draenei, and the next morning I was thinking about burying him, but a bear was lying next to him giving him her milk. When I first saw the bear I thought it was going to eat him so I fought her.

But the bear fought back with strength and savagery I had never seen before. When it was about to kill me I heard my son cry and the bear stopped and took him away."

"Did you look for him?"

"No, I could have but I failed as a father. I cried because I realized as a slaver we think of our slaves as lesser then animals, but an animal was more kinder then his own father, and the bear put so many scratches and bites on me I couldn't really move for a while."

"So you thought it would be a good idea to steal me away from my orc mother? You are a monster."

"THAT IS NOT HOW I FOULD YOU LEVITIUS!" You protested.

"Well how did you find me Ko'ragh the Slaver?"

"I became a solider for the Blood Maul clan made the chieftain know about my half ogre half orc offspring. Orges are forbidden to lay with orcs or draenei, I was happy about that. Also, I thought to myself I had skills from slaving I was able to use in the army and as you might know the Grom and these demon fouled red eyed orcs became a big problem for us ogres. These orcs used a fire called Fel magic, I've seen it burn the flesh from some of my friend's bones, but me, I'm completely immune."

"How?"

"I think it might have something to do with the treatment I got from the draenei, magic doesn't have a strong effect on me. I still feel it but I think it would take an inferno of Fel-fire to kill me. So after that the chieftain started putting me through more intense training, I grew double in size and I was four times stronger and they started putting me on missions to kill orc warlock clans."

"That how you got the title the Anti-Fel Ogre Ko'ragh."

"Yes, but my job wasn't always killing. Sometimes it was information gathering and the things I saw these orcs do were a hundred times worst then anything I had done to slaves. They think very little of there our lives or the lives they destroy. They had this thing where they would take orc babies and turn them into fully grown orc and put a demon soul is put inside them. Those orcs, they reminded me of the cruel things I did to my son's mother, in a rage I killed every single warlock and demon possessed orc, some of them weren't fully grown yet some of them were children and teens, but there was one that didn't change. One I was sure wasn't poised by a demons soul. "

"Me?"

"I thought someday the demon would come, but you cried like a normal ogre baby. These warlocks were doing terrible things to these babies, to their own people, but so had I, by leaving my son, but when I saw you, I remembered that bear that nearly killed me. The bear could have killed my son but she decided to raise him as his own. I hid you away and even told people that you were just a slave, but I will always remember that even the most savage of animals can still be parents when they needed to be. Yes my boy, that baby was you."

"Thank you."

"I wanted to tell you but I just wanted you to think that you were normal, I'm sorry for lying to you after all these years, but you're a good boy and thanks to those two slavers the whole clan can see how great you can be. So do you want to go home now I can buy you some new tools for building?"

"Dad, I. "

"What's wrong?"

"I still want to be a slave catcher."

"After all that you still want to be a slave catcher?"

"It's just, I'm still an orc, I'm your son but I'm still an orc."

"So?"

"I pains me to think that the orcs that are doing these terrible things to each other, but as slaves they might at least live a full life serving the Blood Maul clan."

"That's one way of looking at it, but you're willing to take away their free will?"

"What good have they done with it? I've seen wild boars with more kindness in their hearts, those monsters in that cage what good could they had done and what good will I do for them? I don't think I could do any good just sitting at a workshop all day."

"Levitius, most slavers are really stupid and greedy."

"Then I won't be, but right now I'm just making toys for children."

"Levitius, you are a child."

"Dad I killed seven people today, my own kind. I don't think I'll be able to play with my kid friends anymore. If you're afraid I'm going to be stupid from hanging out with slavers, I'll learn to build houses too."

"All right Levitius if you really want, kids gloves are off, I don't want to see you fall back in your studies."

"Don't worry dad I won't."

I really stopped being a kid that day when you, my father told me everything. For the most part while I wanted to go out and catch some green skinned orcs with Ango'rosh and Boss Bokar but they mainly had me building traps, fixing carts, and repairing broken cages. Most of the time I was there I rarely saw the slaves they brought, I guess that was you're doing, you didn't want me to have contact with slaves because you knew I was better at building them slaving. I did see a draenei from time to time so I guess my traps were working. That wasn't the only thing I saw though. There were these bird people, these ugly blue people, and some brown skinned orcs that looked at me with surprise.

The years past and I was really good at building homes, fixing things, and making traps. Then one day Boss Bokar handed me a crossbow. "That's for you." He said.

"What's it do? " I asked, I looked it, and he realized I was pointing the arrow at himself.

Boss Bokar snatched it away, "Me should have mentioned that it was a weapon, me made it for you Levitius with some of your tools. It wasn't easy but I hope it fits."

He showed we how to fire from the hip and it shot out an arrow.

"We use these to kill?" I asked.

"Not all the time, if you know where to aim you slow down your targets and little numbing poison doesn't hurt too." He explained.

"I like it, but it looks like it might break, do you mind if I make some improvements?" I asked.

"I was counting on it; we might need you to do some hunting for us. We've been seeing draenei more and more less."

"You know I've never actually seen one up close, is my dad okay with this?"

"I haven't asked, but probably not. How are you doing in building school?"

"I'm teaching more then I'm learning, and most of my class mates are twice as tall as me, but dad says I learn more from showing others."

"What are you showing them?"

"Finger exercises to strengthen their hands, most of them gave up on being builders to be warriors and my smart friends have left to pursue arcane magic."

"What about you, you learn how to cast spells?"

"Have you ever caught an orc warlock?"

"Caught yes, kept, not a chance, but there is good orc magic, we didn't always enslave them. We were friend's long time ago."

"How do you know, you don't seem like the type that knows his history?"

"Don't act smart Levitius, even though you is, Me know this because we not allowed to take any shaman as slaves."

"Why not?"

"Because we have shamans too."

"So shamans aren't allowed to kill each other?"

"Killing is different. Me kill shamans before but our shamans know when we do."

"How?"

"Me not know, yous have to ask, but if you see one don't kill them unless they about to attack you. Me think that's why we not allowed to keep shaman slaves. They can speak to each other or something."

"What about the arcane, is that a thing?"

"We learned that from the draenei slaves, Ogres can learn arcane magic, but orcs never taken draenei slaves. You like to learn?"

"Would I still be able to be a slave catcher?"

Boss Bo'kar laughed, "No."

"Well there's your answer."

"Why do you want to be a slave catcher so badly?"

"Have things gotten any better with the red eyed orcs?" I asked.

"No, they still kill each other if they not on chains, they don't work without a whip, it's depressing. Slaving wasn't like this when I was a kid."

"Me and my teacher have been working with some plans to build a fortress that will allow orcs to kill each other in an arena."

"What for?"

"When you put me in that cage so long ago you said that the red eye's orcs are property damage waiting to happen, but what if the red eyed orc had some value that wasn't work?"

"Maybe we try to find more?"

"Right, I think red eyed orcs are a problem that needs to be dealt with. If we let them do what they want, they will kill each other then we would have less to worry about."

"This doesn't feel right though. They are lots of orcs Levitius, most of them don't have red eye's, and they uses to be friends."

"The arena will be will be made with the same mechanics as the traps I've made."

"Some of the red eyed orcs listen once they start talking to brown skinned ones, they speak and sing songs."

"All the orc will be chained and lifted to the top."

"Levitius do you speak any Orcish?"

"We can give them weapons once they get to the top."

"LEVITIUS!"

I stopped.

"Levitius, this isn't a good idea!"

"Why not."

"Because the red eyed orcs are sick, we fix them, and besides they is orcs that are born with red eyes that are not savage animals would you put those orcs in your arena just because they have red eyes? Sometimes we give them back to the Warsong clan to make peace, but if you do this the ties between orcs and ogres will be broken forever. "

"Warsong clan?"

"Brown skinned orcs that are like you Levitius, smart and kind, that want to stop all the warlocks from practicing fel-magic. We are close Levitius soon there will be no Fel-magic on this planet. You wanted to be a slave catcher to give your people's lives meaning."

"They are not my people, they are nothing but monsters!"

"You see no meaning in their lives."

"There will be meanings in their deaths!"

"And High Chieftain likes this idea?!"

"Imperator Mar'gok loves the idea."

Boss Bokar grabbed me by my neck opened up the doors of the slave dens and put me into one of the cages, when put a female brown skinned orc into the cage with me. He spoke some strange language but I heard the term "Gol'mon" thrown back and forth. "What does that mean?" I finally asked. "Gol'mon?"

Boss Bokar looked at me, "It mean 'traitor' Levitius. It means' traitor'."

The two of them exchanged foul words back and forth. I got a few glances from her though I guess I was staring a bit too much. I had never been those close to my own kind since I gained my acceptance into the clan. Seeing her made me feel funny. I heard the words 'thank you' in Organ between both of them.

Boss Bokar walk toward me and got down to my level, "This one is going to teach how to speak Orcish, maybe then yous stop seeing you own people as animals to be slaughtered. "

"I built these cages Boss Bokar," I retorted, "You think I don't know the weaknesses to get out of them? What do you think will happen to you when I tell my father or Imperator Mar'gok, I've seen what he can do with arcane magic."

Boss Bokar laughed, "Dat's your problem Levitius you always think yous the smartest person in the clan. This isn't a slave; she is a shaman I accidentally caught. I was going to return her to her clan, but she has decided to stay with you and will kill you if you try to escape."

I held on to the bars and shook them, "You can't do this, someone will find me, and when they do…. "

I felt a something like a burning pain that went through my hands that block my vision I felt myself fell to the ground loss conciseness. When I woke up she was standing over me, her brown skin, amber eyes, and dark black fell on the sides of her face and she was in reach to grasp. "My name is NaiTan what is you name." She spoke in broken Organ.

"What do you want from me slave, get away from me. When my father find… " I was yelling but I saw a blue energy come out of her hands and felt the strange burning feeling I felt before.

"Thrall?!" she said. She shook her head, "NaiTan shaman…" She reached for my hand but I pushed it away pushed it away but she trying grabbed onto it. I thought about how easy it would be to grab her wrist and crush her bones under her skin. But her skin was so soft. I was afraid that whatever magic she could command could easily be used to kill me, but I was also entranced by her touch and look. She grabbed my hand and place it on her chest. I thought again how easy it would be to grab hold of her throat and crush the parts of her neck, I've never been able to try to control that red part of me the part that completely loses control but I wanted it to.

I felt my heart rite go up as I touched her skin, "NaiTan." She said and touched her hand with my chest. I felt the redness again I thought I might kill her, I felt myself taking a lot of deep breaths and my heart was pounding I felt myself losing control, something was taking over. I felt myself slipping I try to scream to stop touching me, to stop doing whatever she was doing. I grabbed her wrist firmly enough to make her scream out and pain with the free pushed her to the floor I thought my hand was going to go for her throat but it went for her leather shirt and ripped it off exposing her tan and brown breast. Then I felt the shock again but I didn't lose conciseness but something stronger pulled be when I tried to mount her like a riding boar. Something hard slammed me in the ground and the impact made me lose conciseness when I woke up this time I was freezing but I could feel a blanket over me I pulled it off and NaiTan was out of the cage with an animal skin over her body, "Eat." She said.

"Are you okay?!" I asked.

She pointed at something next to my head. I smelled it was faint from so much snot and mucus that had built in my throat. Pork Stew. "Eat." She said.

I took a bite of the meat barely tasting it, "Why is it so cold here? COLD?!"

She looked around, "Elements… Unhappy, but won't kill you." I saw her breath as she spoke. "But I kill you."

The term rape was a word that only brought resentment from what I heard, but I never understood it's motivation. I learned what sex was over the years and even grew more distant with my you, my father, when I realized what you were doing to the orcs and draenei, but I never knew why. I had never seen a female ogre so standards for what was beautiful was a mystery, until that day. I knew NaiTan was beautiful and I wanted to have sex with her, but I didn't want her forced down like a wild animal about to be slaughtered, I was a clear and disturbing image in the redness. "I'm sorry NaiTan." I said.

"Eat" She said. I stood up and realized that I was naked under these pounds of blankets but I was still cold and sick, and wounded. I had blood stained bandages on my inner arms and stomach. "Levitius. Name." I put my hand on my chest. "Levitius thrall catcher." I knew that meant slave now.

She opened the cage walked inside and locked from the outside through the bars and put the key around her neck, "No." She said. She bent down and grabbed my hand, "Levitius hunter."

"Hunter?" I said questionably, I knew what the term meant but that implied a person that killed prey, not someone that caught it alive. "No, catcher, trapper, jailer. Not…"

"No!" She put my hand back on my chest and had a look sadness and sympathy in her face, "Hunter, Levitius hunter." She said.

I nodded my head, "Levitius hunter." She smiled and touched the kissed my forehead.

To my surprise she dropped the animal furs she was holding and took off her tan leather pants and was completely naked, she moved the blanket letting in some of the cold air, got behind me, and held onto me from the back. "Move, I kill you."

That feeling of my heart pounding started to happen again and now it was really hot under these blankets with our two naked bodies against each other. I moved one sweat covered arm outside the blanket but the sudden chill made me want to put my hand back inside, I didn't know if the sweat was coming from the sickness, the heat, or the fact that I truly believed that if I moved to suddenly NaiTan would actually kill me, but as I thought of you father, I began to realized that maybe I was wrong about my people. I wanted to see more, do more. I tried to turn around and look at NaiTans face but she, moved and spoke something in Orcish and I went back into place. I fell asleep more peaceful that I ever had.

There more to come with the next update.

I hated you for a time but you never treated me like a slave, you always called me your son. It was clear when you took me outside, the way the other ogres would look at me, how few ogre children would play with me. I remember when I saw my people, the orcs in chains I thought to myself, "How am I so different from them?"

The day I brought one food I couldn't understand anything that they said, but I saw those red eyes. They were like animals and lounge for me, not the food, me. Why did they want to kill me, why could they be


	10. Chapter 9 Redworm

Redworm

In this universe some people are born into their destiny like keys, unlocking more of the seemly endless cosmos having no connection to the social hierarchy established by the mortal races.

A former blind red haired runaway slave walked the long halls of the Black Temple illuminated by the green torches and the glowing eyes of demons that lurked in the halls. Faint sounds of screams of pain but pleasure as well took place in these halls and the grunts. Fel orcs and elves alike trained in these halls to tame dragons and there skills in battle. One of the grey skinned multi armed shivarra demons held a half-naked elf by her hair, "You do not discriminate elf, they travel too far to be rejected."

"But the Broken are… " She screamed in desperation.

"You are alive to give pleasure to others or I could give you to one of Fel Orc commanders, let his men use you-" a blade was flying through the air and cutting three of shivarra demons arms off dropping the girl on the ground. The demons screams echoed through the halls and the women in den covered their ears. The blade bounded off the walls and came back to the figure that threw it, "We let in Broken now?" he asked.

She looked back at the figure his eyes and tattoos as they were glowed green, "That Broken labored for two years to spend one night in this den. We usually don't, but the stories that one would have brought back could have raised moral among all the other workers."

There were few demons actually loyal to Illidan's cause, but demons always have their own personal agenda, three new arms grew out where her three arms were cut off, and they were soaked in green blood. She moved them around and the elf girl ran off into a corner with other girls, "I really like those arms Redworm, I suppose I'm just going to have to break these ones in."

"You will have greater losses if the women around here have to watch a disgusting act like that, sad women can't pleasure anyone." Redworm stated. "Break into his mind and give him happy thoughts, demon."

The shivarra demon laughed, "That will be more trouble than it's worth."

Redworm smiled and drew both of his blades, "Then let me motivate you."

Redworm walked toward the shivarra demon transformed into his own demon form and was now taller than her. He grabbed her by the throat and took her to the floor, "I could violate you in front of that Broken Draenei that will give him happy thoughts to take home." Redworm's voice was deeper and distorted.

Redworm changed back to his normal size the shiarra demon now twice his size, "You don't have the guts or the equipment to last long enough." She grabbed Redworm by all four of his limbs, with four of her hands she pinned him to the floor, the last set of hands tore off Redworms clothes. "Now I've got you boy." The demon stood up stretched out all of his limbs apart looking at his naked body reaching for his pelvic area with her last set of hands, "It's fitting I should let you taste heaven before I take you to hell." The demon licked the side of his face.

Redworm's eyes glowed from red to green and a beam of fel energy was blasted through his eyes and transformed him into a black and green winged demon again, the shivarra demon disappeared into a dust of red and greed fire, "Looks like I got you." he said, smiled, put his clothes back on, and picked himself up off the floor.

The elf that was being choked ran over to Redworm with her arms open like she wanted to hug him. He just looked at her, moved his arms blades in a slashing movement, and the elf woman's head fell from her body. All the women in the Den of Mortal Delights screamed and gasped. "The next time any of you even speak of fornicating with lesser beings, don't you dare try to touch me. The only reason I killed that demon is because I didn't want to see that disgusting act in front of me!" Redworm placed both of his blades behind his back, looked around, and breathed in, "Now where is that Broken Draenei, maybe I can motivate him too."

The sound of running footsteps like a horse could be heard from far away, "I recognize that hoof clomps anywhere." Redworm said with a smile as he spinned around his blades.

"Lord Illidan will hear of this." The Broken Draenei said as he ran out of the halls and went outside.

"Oh, well I guess I better make sure that he doesn't." Redworm had a smile from ear to ear; it would be an easy hunt and for better purpose that most of his assignments. Redworm blazed forward and when he was outside a large group of his illidari were waiting outside with blades at the ready. The Broken Draenei just stood behind them all.

Redworm turned his face away from the crowd, "Well, I guess I'll be going then." But a giant demon skin fist entered his field of view and he was out cold.

Redworm woke up to cold water and beatings from a whip. He was hanging by both of his arms, but no sound came from the high elf as new slashes dripped green blood on the ground. The blue skinned winged male demonic taskmaster grew more frustrated with every lash of the whip, "What is wrong with you elf?" he grunted. The demon put his beasty face close to the elf and Redworm spit green blood in his face.

"High Elves use nerve poison when they torture." Redworm chuckled.

"This isn't torture, this is punishment. You could at least make some kind of noise; do you know how bad this makes me look? A torture chamber with no screams?" The demon complained

"It couldn't be worst then what I have to look at, demon." Redworm smiled.

The demonic taskmaster eye's went wide, "Demon?! Look at your blood illidari, you and I are the same."

Redworm shook his head and smiled, "Ouch, that's the closest thing to damage you've done since I got here."

The demon taskmaster yelled and let out another six lashes and the most he got out of Redworm was a flitch. The taskmaster stopped and caught his breath and grabbed a pair of giant pliers a clanged them in front of him, "With this you will never hold a sword again, do you still think this is funny? Do you still think you're cute?"

Redworm rolled his eyes and smiled, "You not the first person to say that to me, my last slave master took both of my eyes and bitch I'm adorable."

The taskmaster took one of his pinky fingers and put the pliers around it, sweat fell from Redworm's face but he still looked at the demons face with a smile from ear to ear. The taskmaster crunched one of his finger bones and Redworm let out a scream through his teeth as he clinched down and followed it with more laughter, "That was a push in the right direction." The demon taskmaster stated as he lowered the pliers into the next bone of his pinky. "Let try this one."

"THAT'S ENOUGH!"

A sound of a familiar voice came to the right of Redworm the taskmaster looked behind him. "Lord Illidan." The taskmaster graveled on his knees and a demonic purple skinned winged elf stepped into the chambers. Illidan Stormrage looked at Redworm in his face, the rest of his body, and looked back at the demonic taskmaster, "I said twenty lashes on the back and a day's worth hard labor under your supervision, demon."

"Lord Illidan, these elves must be put into a level of submission before they will even listen to me. The breaking of this one has been more then taxing." The demon complained.

Redworm spit on the ground and looked at the demon, "You could've just asked."

Illidan looked over at Redworm, "Would you have listened?"

Redworm half smiled, "Sure, on one conduction, say my name."

"It's Red-"

Redworm intercepted Illidan Stormrage," Not you Illidan, the demon taskmaster, Ashima."

The taskmaster demon eyes went wide not just because he didn't know who he was torturing but the fact that he knew his name, "Well it's, it's, ah, Red Rose?" he guessed.

Illidan and Redworm repressed a laugh, "Red Rose?" Illidan repeated it; he wasn't hiding it anymore he laughed openly with Redworm. "Red Rose," Redworm said in laughter, "why, you like what you see? Keep your eye to yourselves from now on demon, I don't swing that way, I'm a real man. " Redworm teased.

Ashima started laughing as well and Illidan stopped all of sudden and punched Ashima in the teeth knocking him to the ground, "This isn't a laughing matter for you demon, release Redworm at once."

"Yes, Lord Illidan, at once." The taskmaster wiped the green blood from his month and took the key from his desk and unlocked Redworm from his bindings.

"Where are my blades?" Redworm asked.

"Over there." The demon pointed to a corner of the room Redworm wasn't facing. Redworm grab the blades walked toward the door and swept the blades through the air cutting off the demon task masters head.

"Redworm!" Illidan grabbed him by the hand and lifted him up in the air. Redworm screamed in pain because it was the hand that had the broken finger. "I been hearing whipping sounds for hours and not a peep out of you, what's got you so bothered?"

"He broke my finger you halfwit, and the fact that we need to fill demons in our ranks is a fact that were all screwed." Redworm complained.

Illidan looked at the demons corpse and back at Redworm, he had an angry look on his face, "He disobeyed me so I see why you killed him, but don't you ever dare question my methods, you are not prepared for what we are coming to face."

Redworm scoffed, "Methods, plans, alliances, slaves, I don't care Illidan! All I care about is fighting, getting stronger, and killing. I may die a nameless soldier on a forgotten battlefield, but if I can't live my life the way I want I might as well be, so if you're going to kill me, kill me, but if you're not stop wasting my time! " Redworm kicked Illidan on the side of his face, his head tilted to the right and green blood fell from his lip.

Illidan pushed Redworm back and he landed on his feet, he touched his lip, looked at his hand, and saw that there was blood on it. "I envy you Redworm but that not enough reason to kill you. Rest assured there will more battles to come."

Redworm put both of his blades behind his back, "Good." He said and nodded.

Illidan crossed his arms tilted his head to the side, "Stay out of the Den of Mortal Delights from now on; it seems a fitting punishment for you Redworm." He ordered.

Redworm laughed, "You think I would want to lay with one of those weak loped sided ass hussies, Illidan. I take pride in having standards, I just happen to be passing through. I was curious about the demon though." He looked away as he recalled the thought.

Illidan put his arms down, stepped forward, and glared at Redworm, "Don't let it happen again."

Redworm narrowed his eyes at Illidans gaze nodded once and it was returned, Illidan Stormrage left the room.

Redworm went to his living courters to rest for the night he was beat both figuratively and literally but before he could entered his tent another shivarra demon was waiting outside his tent with all three sets of arms her crossed, but this one had blue skin. "I brought you some wine, I thought it would help with pain." She said and threw a full waterskin at him. He caught it and drank it, but coughed as its sweet bitterness went past his throat. "It will keep you warm throughout the night, but I could keep you warm if wine is not your thing."

Redworm looked away, laughed to himself, and shook his head, "I thought you demons took the forms of people that appealed to the target your trying to seduce."

The shivarra demon shrugged, "My masks wouldn't work on someone with your eyes Redworm, but that's not why I came here."

Redworm looked at the demon that was well over a foot taller the he was and crossed his arms, "Well, what you want then?"

"I got promoted," She explained, " and I know that Illidan forbid you to enter the Den of Mortal Delights so what I'm trying to say is that if you need a favor or two my door will always be open."

Redworm rolled his eyes, "What do you want a metal, supervise your whores, and leave me out of it demon."

The shivarra sucked on her teeth three times and shook her head, "Making a lot of assumptions, Redworm. I wasn't implying sexual, I have other talents in combat and mind control." The shivarra demon threw him a white stone with green markings on it, "Run your fingers down the green parts and it should teleport me to your location, but if you put me in the middle a battlefield or I see you bleeding a pool of your own blood I'll just go back home, I'm not that kind of demon."

"You got a name demon?" Redworm asked.

The shivarra demon half smiled, looked away, and back at Redworm, "It's Malevolence."

Redworm raised his eyebrows looked at Malevolence's whole body, "I'll take you up of that first favor if you don't mind, on all fours and no mask." Redworm laughed to himself, "Or eight."

Malevolence breathed out and walked toward Redworms into tent It was still big enough for her not to lower her head to much, when she was close to him she said, "Don't make this a habit, it can be quite addicting you know. I don't need Lord Illidan blaming me that one of his precious illidari had gotten sloppy."

Redworm pushed Malevolence from her butt into his tent and closed the door behind him.

Malevolence put her clothes back on and looked at the naked demon hunter asleep in his bed and put a blanket over him. Redworm opened his eyes with anger and suspension at Malevolence, "I don't sleep if you were hoping to snuggle. Just, you might catch a cold, I thought." She explained. Malevolence took the waterskin filled with wine and took a drink of it. Redworm held the blanket, pulled it closer to his face and closed his eyes, but his ears still twitched like they had when he was blind. Illidan had given him new eyes but he still "saw" things clearer when his eyes were closed. Everything was still black but his blind vision could see 360 degrees just in small tiny white dots that responded to the sounds of his breathing or anything that was in the background. But when colors started to show and his thoughts began to race he knew he was dreaming.

He dreamed that he was trapped and he could move but his path was narrowed like being in between two large walls that were being closed around him, "Demons." He said, sighed and realized he shouldn't have laid with that shivarra demon. The green symbols on his chest started to burn, he looked at his body and the whip marks where gone, but the tattoos on his chest started to bleed. "I will take this body for my own, demon hunter." A voice said.

Redworm scoffed, "Oh good, it's you. I might be able to take Malevolence up on another 'favor'."

"You ate my heart did you really think I was just going to just go and let you take my powers?" the demon complained.

"Well even though I ate your heart you will always be part of mine." Redworm said sarcastically.

"Watch your words, boy! Hundreds demon hunters at Illidans command and I get stuck with the one with the smart ass mouth."

Redworm looked down at his feet and saw that he was standing in water now and was still naked. He felt something like the wind behind him and he turned his head and he felt a stabbing pain in his eyes. The magical vision he had before was gone, blind once more. Redworm held on to his wounded eyes surprised that he could feel such immense pain if his dreams, "You think because you have something new that it can't be taken away again?" the demon taunted.

Redworm whistled like he did when he was blind to give somethings structure to his surroundings, but waves of water drowned out any sound he could make with his voice and the water was getting deeper and more violent. "I can still find you without my eyes demon. I still remember your smell!" Redworm screamed.

It was true, but there was a still a strong smell of salt in the air. He was truly blind as the water was now at his waist and he heard more waves crashing at his chest. He heard the sound of a big wave coming, Redworm put out his hands in defense hoping to swim over or under the incoming wave. But it crashed into him taking him with the current and the salt from the water stringed his wounded eyes and salt water went into his gapping wounds. He thought the pain couldn't get any worst but he was plugged into a bed of steel trap spikes and they went through two parts of shoulder and chest. He screamed with his whole voice, there was no laughing off this pain. No sound couldn't be heard because he was still completely underwater. The water subsided and he coughed out what was in his lungs but another wave crashed into him pushing his body deeper onto the spikes. The water subsided again but this time Redworm took a deep breath, "Redworm." He heard the demons voice say. He put his arms to feel if there was anything around him. He could feel the one eyed beholders gaze, the demon he killed and whose heart he had consumed. He heard another wave of water coming to him he pulled and picked himself off the spikes that had impaled his shoulder and chest and drove toward in the water but he felt something wrap around his neck like a sticky tentacle pulled him out of the water, "In the land of blind, Redworm." He heard the beholder demons voice close to him.

Redworm woke up suddenly seeing everything around him and a green demon eye was staring at him, he grabbed it with his hand crushed it in his grip, but there was a tight pain on his chest where his tattoos uses to be, they were bleeding on his sheets but wounds from his torture were completely gone. "The runes." He said in panic, and looked at the areas he uses to have tattoos, "The runes were supposed to keep the demons in check." He said to himself.

Redworm ran out of his living courters and sprint to Illidan's living courters that was in the middle of the Den of Mortal Delights. Illidan woke up from his sleep and saw the angry high elf with his blades drawn, Redworm rushed toward him but he had blades of his own and in a flash Illidan blocked his first attack and followed with a kick to Redworms chest sending him back flying on his feet, "What is the meaning of this Redworm, you were forbidden to!-"

"SHUT UP!" Redworm screamed.

Illidan stood up, "I knew I was too lenient with you, this time-"

"The runes are gone Illidan and it drawing lesser demons to me; they will not give me the peace of a nights rest." Redworm explained.

"So, you stormed into my halls and attacked me in my sleep because you had a nightmare?!" Illidan yelled angrily.

"This wasn't a nightmare Illidan, I went through more of your stupid visions, when I saw the invasion I accepted it. I have proved that I had what it took to be a demon hunter. You said that the runes would stop the visions and keep the demons in check." Redworm explained.

"You have proved nothing high elf," Illidan argued, "I only gave you the same test that I gave everyone else and you passed because you had nothing to lose. You never knew what it was like having everything that made you happy and knowing that the Legion will take it away." A set of fel orc guards and the illidari showed up around Redworm and Illidan. "Each and every one of my Illidari has had to relive past traumas that was caused by the Burning Legion. You're nothing but a magicless high elf, a former slave with no idea what to do with your freedom, Keal'Thas was right about you, I should have killed you when you killed your former master in Hellfire Peninsula."

"You're welcome to try again." The illidari and fel orcs all drew there blades, but Illidan held out his hand, dropped his green moon shaped warglaives on the ground and stepped forward. "You not going to fight me with your warglaives, they will never find your body when I'm done with you." Redworm had his blades at the ready but Illidan kept moving forward, "Well are we going to do this or what?" Redworm taunted.

Redworm transformed into his demon form taking on a size that towered over illidan and hit Illidan in the face with the blunt part of his blades and knocking him into a wall. Redworm charged up his eye beam and shot Illidan with fel energy leaving a cloud of dust and destruction in his path. The dust settled and Illidan was unscathed, he laughed to himself, and gestured Redworm to come toward him.

Redworm went back into an elf again and ran toward him, but Illidan ran away to a corridor outside. Redworm followed suit and saw Illidan fly into the air. He looked up in the sky and saw Illidan waiting for him and he flew down to the top of the Black Temple. Redworm put his blades behind him and used his wings to climb to the top and gave himself a boost, but he couldn't fly like Illidan could. Redworm got to the top of the temple and took his blades off his back. Illidan just stood there with his arms crossed, Redworm rushed him with his blades in his hands and Illidan flew up and put his knee in his face knocking back Redworm a few meters back on his back. Redworm wiped the blood from his face; it was red now, he was surprised because it had always been green since he had become a Demon Hunter. "You did this to me." Redworm stated and got back up.

"Are we going to do this or what?" Illidan teased. Redworm went on the offence with his blades slashing, striking, and stabbing but Illidan just dodged, parried, and blocked with his leather gauntlets. Redworm screamed with a downward slash with the last of his stamina and Illidan dodged to the right and slammed his elbow on the back of his head putting Redworm on the floor again. Illidan walked away as he lay on the ground, members of the illidari and fel orcs came to the top of the Black Temple to watch what seemed like a fight, but Redworm was on the ground face down. Illidan looked at his men and Redworm used that distraction to get up and plunge both of his blades into Illidan stomach and looked at his green blood dripping out, but he looked up at Illidan, and he wasn't fazed. Illidan grabbed him by waist lifted him up in the air, flew up into the sky, and dropped Redworm fifty yards into the ground on the back of his head in a winged demon power bomb. Everyone that was watching made gaps and ow noises, they felt his pain as he lay on the now cracked ground. Illidan grabbed Redworm by the leg in the air upside down and looked at his face, "You are not-"

"-done yet." Redworm opened his eyes, interrupted Illidan with a blast of fel energy to Illidans face from his eyes, knocking Illidan to the ground. The crowd gasps as both of them lay on the ground. Redworm got up completely out of breath and his face dipping with red blood and he reached for his blades and put them in his hand. Illidan got up as well; he had been quiet and calm for the whole fight, but now he looked completely pissed off. Illidan ran toward Redworm and kneed him in the stomach striking him so hard Redworm went airborne but before he could land Illidan grabbed Redworm by the face and slammed his horns into Redworms horns breaking his into pieces, but following up with twelve more head-butts to Redworm's face. Illidan took Redworms body and threw him yards away from the Black Temple. "Well you're done now." Illidan said out of breath, as he watched Redworm fall to his death.

One of the illidari stepped forward, "Lord Illidan, there are chances with Redworm's wings that he could survive that fall."

"I know," Illidan looked over at the demon hunter, "but he won't think of coming back after that humiliation."

Redworm woke up surrounded by the demon skulls that littered the outskirts of the Black Temple his face and body partly covered in blood but the pain in his chest had stopped. The tattoos he had was now a red infected wound that was turning to heal. His face bloodstained, numb, and swollen and there was a constant burning sting where his horns use to be, but he was alive, he didn't let go of his blades, and most of all he could walk. He was thankful for that most of all. "Wow Redworm that was worst then anything I could have dreamed up." A voice said.

Redworm got his blades ready and looked around but there was nothing, "Why ya hiding, come back to finish the job? Come out and fight like a man!"

"I'm not Illidan, but I could come out if I wanted." The voice continued, there was pain in his chest as the wound started to breed again. "I could now rip myself from your chest cavity if I wanted to. But I can feel your pain, your suffering, your anger, your sadness, and your fear, you can't escape me. You belong to me now." The demon inside him, "Now I can feed on it all, I don't think I'm going anywhere for a long time."

Redworm clitched his teeth went into his transformation "SHUT UP!" he screamed his voice deep and distorted and he blasted the sky with fel energy from his eyes. He went back in his elven body and was out of breath, and he felt something he hadn't felt in a long time. A hunger for food, water, and mana, he looked back at the Black Temple and knew he wouldn't get any aid from his brothers in arms and if more demons came because of him, then again he wouldn't be able to stay in the Black Temple even if he did leave on good terms. His head hurt, his mouth was dry, and he had injuries that needed to be attended to, the demon that was no out of control in his body, and the unyielding rage to beat Illidan Stormrage to a blood pulp. He couldn't get any of these standing where he was. He put his blade behind him and started walking.

He walked for a bit taking in a bit of his new found freedom and a large crowd of nether drakes where being ridden by fel orcs passed by. Before his ascension he found them to be worthy opponents, now weak minded fools, all brawl, no brains.

"Hey over here, what's up guys?!" Redworm screamed.

One of the fel orc riding a nether drake stopped, "A demon hunter outside the walls of the Black Temple. Oh that is rich."

"What are you doing?" Redworm demanded.

"Heading to attack." The orc pointed at the nearby orcs heading in a direction the other orcs were going.

"Heading to attack?" Redworm asked.

"Yes, flying to attack the Sanctum of Stars." He explained.

"Thwarting my plans?"

"Aww, what?"

"Are you?"

"No."

"Good, because that would be bad."

"How bad?"

"I'd have to kill you."

"That would be bad."

"Indeed, stupid looking dragon ya got there, can it hold two people?"

"No he can't, can I help you, some message from Illidan I take it?"

"Good, I came to help you actually. " Redworm used his wings to fly up a few yards and kneed the fel orc in the face knocking him off his Nether Drake, "I'm not exactly working for Illidan anymore, creep." He laughed as he got on the dragon and took off.

The orc grabbed his face and screamed, "Why do you need a dragon when you already have wings?!"

"Eat a dick!" Redworm looked back screamed as he took off on the stolen Nether Drake.

Redworm caught up with the rest of the fel orcs and they were indeed attacking. He saw them flying into a volley arrows some of them went down but Redworm blocked the incoming arrows with his blades but his dragon wasn't so lucky. Redworm fell on his feet and he felt mage fire incoming in, it smacked him in the face, and he threw his blade at the one who cast it and he fell back like a bag of potatoes. He saw all the other blood elves gasp as this human male mage died and they all started running in all directions. The Fel Orcs were finally winning, "Lay down your arms." A red haired blood elf with a red axe and black and green armor stepped forward and said, "Please, name your demands and leave my people in peace."

One of Fel orcs got off his dragon and stepped forward, "Good because we know you've been stealing our-"

Redworm pushed the fel orc out of the way, "Food, water, and whatever you people use for mana these days."

The black armored blood elf had a shock of surprise, "Wait, you don't want our eggs anymore?"

Redworm shrugged, "If you got eggs that's good too, I like mine over-easy, not too much salt."

The fel orc commander stepped forward, "Who the hell do you thinking you are, wait I know you're…?" Redworm turned around and looked at him.

"Aw look it's Mor'ghor, you want a bone boy? You want a bone?" Redworm teased.

Both the armored blood elf and and Mor'ghor had a look of shock, "Do you think I'm a dog?" Mor'ghor asked.

"You, red haired elf, food now!" Redworm demanded toward the armored blood elf.

The red haired blood elf hunter looked in shock, "Innkeeper, food if you'd be so kind." he said. The innkeeper came with a plate full of assorted meat. Redworm took off the meat from a cooked bird "Have a bone." He said and threw the bone at Mor'ghor face and it dropped on the floor. "Lord Illidan." He said, trying to repress his rage, "Lord Illidan, said to try to minimize casualties, but I will not-"

"Mor'Ghor?!" Redworm yelled as he smiled.

"What!" Mor'Ghor yelled back.

"You better duck, because I'm about to turn right and I down wanna smack you down with my dick." Mor'Ghor did indeed duck and in a flash Redworm slashed, strike, and stabbed anyone behind him and the only sounds that could be heard was the clank of steel, the stabbing of soft tissue, the spay of blood, and the gurgle of choking as the fel orcs behind him choked on their own blood. "Now I heard that blood is good for the skin, but you fel orcs eat some much pork I might actually have high cholesterol now." Redworm teased.

Mor'Ghor looked at Redworm who was now covered in his men's blood from head to toe and he fell backwards and held his hand in defense, "Redworm, listen, you've won us a harsh battle but we need those eggs to train more Dragonmaw Skybreakers, now I can keep my mouth shut to about this incident, but I can't go back to Lord Illidan empty handed."

Redworm put his blades behind his back, walked forward until he was in striking range, and crossed his arms. "Tell him what happen Mor'Ghor, but I'm thinking I want a healthy breakfast today so no eggs for you, but here if you don't want to go back empty handed, I want you to give him a little message." Redworm pulled a piece of paper out, concentrated his fel energy into his finger, wrote his message, folded it, and sealed it with fel magic. "You give him this and don't you even think about opening it until it's in Illidans hands."

Mor'Ghor took the paper and ran to the Black Temple, an hour of running and he found Illidan in his throne room, "Lord Illidan, " He said out of breath, "one of your Demon Hunters went rogue, he wanted me to give you this message."

"Redworm… I suppose it's not surprising that he survived, I threw him off the Black Temple."

Mor'Ghor looked at him, "I was unaware of that. He killed all my Dragonmaw orcs and told me to give this to you."

Mor'Ghor handed the paper to Illidan, he looked at the message, and back at Mor'Ghor, "Mor'Ghor why did you give this to me?"

Mor'Ghor came closer to Illidan, "Why, what does it say?" Illidan showed him the piece of paper and he read, "Dear Illidan, and there a picture of a butt." Mor'Ghor tried to repress a laugh, "There's poop on the bottom and it spells F-K YOU." Mor'Ghor tired with all his might not to laugh and Illidan grew angrier. "I'm sorry my lord." He said smiling. Illidan punched him in the face will all his might and yelled out. He charged up his fel magic from his eyes, but another illidari grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Please Lord Illidan." The female illidari said, "Redworm is less than quarter of a century old, you can't expect any level of maturity from him."

Illidan let out a sigh and looked at the fel orc lying unconscious on the ground, "I suppose your right, when he wakes up tell him to go back to his post, I'm going to bed." He began to walk outside his throne room, stopped and looked back at his fellow demon hunter, "Would you think it was strange if I said I actually miss him?" He asked.

The illidari shook her head, "No, he did tend to lighten things up around here."

Illidan looked down, sighed, shook his head, and left for his bedroom. The Illidari never saw Illidan in such a state of depression. For as long as Illidan had been freed from his 10,000 year prison and maybe even before that he had always had a look of discontent and only smiled when he had reached a milestone of in own personal conquest or ambition. Did Illidan ever get depressed or mourned. "Why didn't you just kill him?!" She shouted. The illidari followed to the last place she saw Illidan and met his gaze in the hallway. Illidan was standing upright and confident as he usually did, but she continued. "You have killed for so much less, any lesser person would have stabbed him the heart it he attacked them in there bed chambers and he openly challenged you, attacked you clumsily and cowardly, and you still spared him!"

Illidan narrowed his vision and knew what she was thinking. She was mistaking his kindness for weakness, "I broke his horns and threw him off the top of the Black Temple!" Illidan raised his voice and implied that it could happen to her as well, but he calmed himself, "But tell me Moirasil, would you kill a child for misbehaving, would you kill your own child?"

"No, but we are not children. Many elves have died in the attempt to become demon hunters and you never so much a batted an eye lash at the deaths that occur in this temple." Moirasil stated.

Illidan half smile and rolled eyes in the way that he could "True, I have tested you all and most of you failed, but your wrong. Some of the elves that have died at this point were friends, friends that supported my efforts even before my imprisonment, but Redworm is 16, young even for a human and has passed all my test with flying colors."

Moirasil was in disbelief, "How?" She recalled her visions, her own physical and mental torture, and disembowelment of her own eyeballs.

Illidain sighed and smiled as he recalled Redworm's initiation, "The same way a person can walk across burning hot coals, by never owning a pair of shoes."

Moirasil looked at him quisitively but Illidan continued, "Redworm was born a slave to some cruel owners and when I met him he was already blind. The ritual is somewhat depenent on the user adjusting to the new power, it was risky but he never wavered. He accepted every pain with laughter, the hopeless visions with confidence and optimism, and the transformation like a new uniform. An even now he still manages to make me the butt of his childish jokes." He smiled and held up the massage that was given to him. "But then again, I was guilted by the fact, maybe even jealous, that what felt like a hellfire for most was nothing more then a hot bath for him."

Moirasil laughed at her fearless leader speaking like a child that had just lost his puppy, "So that why you were so easy in him. Because he was better then us, better then you."

Illidan slamed his hand into Morisasil thoat and pinned her to the wall, "Spend the majority of your existence craving death more then freedom and being denied both, spend your existence knowing only subservience to greater power is your only law, and knowing only the promise of anguish as payment for services rendered, then... " Illidan stopped, put her down, and she gasp for breath. "The destruction of the Burning Legion is the reason for my existence I have come to accept that, but I have looked into the minds of thousands of demons and they are not always wrong about the cruelty of humanity."

Illidan turned away and continued toward his bed chambers. Moirasil thought of pressing the issue of the Broken slaves that were kept but knew they had a purpose. Illidan had shown mercy, compassion, and even doubt and wasn't a leader that was cruel for the sake of cruelty, even if some of his subjects did. "I hope he comes back." Moirasil said. In the distance she saw him nod in acknowledgement.

Meanwhile Redworm at the Sanctum of Stars was being waited on hand a foot by the innkeepers there. He scarfed down meat and wine sitting in a chair while other female elves tended to his injuries. The red haired blood elf hunter step forward into the inn, "I'm glad to see you're enjoying yourself, but how do you plan on paying for all the services we're providing?" he asked.

Redworm looked at the blood elf, laughed for a few seconds, and stopped, "How about, no." he answered.

All the blood elves in the room calmly walked out of the room and took his food and wine away and left Redworm by himself with the red haired blood elf, "Listen, my name is Commander Hobb and I know I can't best you in battle, but I've never seen anyone fight like you, where are you from."

Redworm laughed, "Sheesh and I thought my name was stupid, did your mom name you after some kind of corn or beer?"

Commander Hobb looked at him questionable, "It was my grandfather's name, and could you just answer the question?"

Redworm looked back at Hobb, "A cage mostly, I only left to be overworked and over beaten."

"What about parents?" Hobb asked.

Redworm rolled his eyes, "Do you think my parents would name me Redworm? That was a name given to me by slave masters."

"Because you were a magicless high elf, but those were names of the past, were all blood elves now." He gestured toward his surroundings.

Redworm shook his head, "Don't think you share any level of kinsmen ship with me just because we have the same color skin and the same ears, your people, your politics, kept me a slave."

"How old were you?" Hobb asked.

"Why the hell do you care?!" Redworm retorted.

Hobbs crossed his arms and thought back, "Judging by the way you seem to talk and fight. You seem to have very little regard for yourself or the people around you. You seem to live too much in the moment never any regard for the future, and you seem reckless, and brash. You killed a group of you own men, quite swiftly I might add, just to send a massage to your former master."

Redworm nose twitched angry "He is not my master; he never has, and never will be."

Hobb looked at him questionably, "Then what was he to you?"

Redworm looked down and shook his head, "A teacher and a friend."

Hobbs eyes went wide, "What?"

Redworm looked angry at Hobbs, "A friend, are you deaf, why are you asking me all these stupid questions, don't talk to me like I'm some kind of interrogated prisoner. We've never talked before, why would you want know anything about me?"

Hobb looked away and back at Redworm, "I don't know anything about you… I just have a feeling about you."

Redworm stood up and was somewhat dizzy from all the wine he drank and the bandages on his face impaired his vision, but he closed his eyes drew his blades and clanged them together. He noticed the whole time they had been talking a group of archers were waiting outside and were waiting on the top of the building as well. He opened his eyes again and looked at Hobbs. "I may not be on good terms with Illidan anymore, but if you think I'm going to throw in my lot with his enemies you got another thing coming. So Commander Corn-On-Cobb, if you're going to kill me you better order your men to do it now."

Commander Hobb's eye went wide and he backed away held up his hand up and heard the surrounding blood elves draw arrows, "Wait a second can you block that many arrows?" the demons voice asked and time began to slow down.

"Nope." Redworm said in his head.

"But we both live here, you going to a let least try right, like draw your blades at least, Demon Hunter?"

"Nope were going to die regardless." Redworm said in his head and smiled.

"But I'm the one in control."

Redworm crossed his arms and laughed, "Not for long."

"What about Illidan he took your pride Redworm, he built you up just throw you back down in the dirt, and tried to take your life, and now you going to let some scared, cowardly elves that wouldn't dare cross blades with you take your life, don't you want to see that buffoon grovel at your feet?" Redworm didn't say anything, not even in his head, but he did think about what he said, "I'll take that silence as a maybe, but you have to show me a little faith."

"Why should I trust you, you haven't even told me your name?" Redworm stated.

"You know that it's not good for people to know a demons name, but since I don't want to die and you seem to want to build our relationship, it's Xantam."

Redworm heart started beating fast and his life began to flash before his eyes and everything was still in slow motion, "No, no, no, no, don't do that." Xantam pleaded.

He did see an image of his mother, her beautiful long red hair, glowing green eyes, and the sweet smell of her hair and breast milk. He remembered the waters of the sunwell and being dipped into it. His father saying, "Come on Red, glow." He saw him look over at his mother and shake his head. Then she ran toward him and tried to fight him, but he back handed her knocking her in the water and said, "We can't afford to take care of one that doesn't have magic."

Redworm mother just laid there for a moment, run toward his father and saw her trying to take away a dagger from his father and put it in his stomach and grabbed baby Redworm and ran, but she didn't get far, guards arrested her they took him away from her. He remembered her screaming and crying as they took him away from her and a tear fell from Redworms face.

"My mother, they took me away from her? I need to find her!" Redworm said in his head

The beholder demon Xantam showed up in front of the image and slapped him in the face with his tentacle and brought him back into the moment still in slow motion, arrows were already flying as Commander Hobbs put his arm down. "I can help you, I can heal those wounds, we can kill him, make Illidan Stormrage grovel at your feet, and if you still remember, we can find your mother."

Redworm felt the first three arrows go into his chest and another two in the right of his neck. "If you trust me and let me take control…" Xantam continued

"I will not take a contract-" Redworm retorted.

"This isn't a contract; this is trust between two friends that just happen to share the same house." He felt three more arrows go into his chest and it knocked him on the ground. Redworm lifted his hand in the air as he felt himself slip away, he saw Xantam tentacle go toward his hand, "Deal?" he asked.

Redworm grabbed it and nodded his head, "Deal."

Redworm saw the image of Xantam go into his body and his spine begin to shock as every fiber of his bones radiated with pain. Redworm arched his back as he screamed in pain, he rolled around as more arrows were shot in his back but he didn't feel that, he heard Commander Hobbs scream, "Cease fire."

He grabbed his burning chest wound that would bleed sometimes, but it was now drawing in blood into him. He stood up and continued to scream and balled his fist and clinched his teeth as tightly as he could. His left side gained some swelling mass, ripping his leather battle vest, he felt his own muscles break his bones in his shoulder, and his voice became deeper and beastlike, "Quit whinning." Xantam said. "Did I say this was going to be easy?" He fell back on the ground from the weight of his left side and screamed as the other side continued to grow. He arched his back and it felt like the demon was trying to push his way out of his chest, but the muscles in his chest grew out breaking the rest of his battle vest. He felt his bones and muscles in his legs break and build back together and when he got up his time he felt the monstrous strength like he never felt before. It was bigger than his last demon form and so much stronger, "What is this?" Redworm asked in his head.

He heard the demon laugh, "You mine Redworm, until we find your mother and you kill Illidan Stormrage or he admits defeat you're mine."

"I will make him grovel before I kill him." Redworm voice was deeper and raspy.

"That's the spirit." Xantam cheered.

Redworm looked down at Commander Hobbs, "Fire at will!" he ordered, but his blood elves ran for their lives, he looked back and saw there cowardice and Redworm grabbed Commander Hobb with his giant hands. Redworm saw a green orc coming off a wyvern and he charged him with his sword. Redworm grew bones out of his forearms and stabbed them through the orcs plate armor, lifted him up and threw him aside. "Where is my mother?" Redword shouted, his voice deep and beast like.

"Wait, what? I don't know, what did she look like? A name, please?" Hobbs asked in panic.

"Red hair, green eyes, Arwen Rider, smells of Mage Royal." Redworm said.

"Wow you remember her name?" Xantam stated.

"I don't know." Hobb's said. Redworm got his bone forearm ready to stab and other bones started to show up on his back and neck, "Wait, Tempest Keep, you won't find more high elves in Outland then in Tempest Keep if I were looking for any elf I would start there." Redworm threw him to the side and a female gnome put daggers in his lower leg. Redworm grabbed her like a mosquito and crushed her into the ground and continued to walk away from the Sanctum of Stars.

"Wait you not going to kill him?" Xantam asked.

"He gave me seemly good information, if it was bad well I'll come back, and I imagine I will haunt his dreams for quite a few nights, also the hunt will be a lot more fun." Redworm said in his head as he walked away.

"Can't argue with that, but how are we going to get there, it's all the way across Outland." Xantam stated.

"I know an orc I've been looking forward to paying him a… what's it called again." Redworm asked

"A visit?" Xantam answered

"No, a beating, I need to pay him a beating." Redworm joked.

Redworm walked in this demon form are a long time but more spikes from his back kept coming out and each one hurt more than the other. Redworm loved having this much power but even he had his limits, he fell down and another set of spikes came out of his back and with every spike a cup of his own red blood fell on the floor. "Oops, I may have gone a bit overboard, you mortals are so fragile." Redworm fell on the ground on all fours and the spikes went back into his body and his began revert back into an elf again.

"I held that form for more than five minutes. I usually can only subtend Illidan's demonic form for few seconds." Redworm stated as he looked at his hands.

"Is it really surprising that Illidan kept secrets and limitations on his illidari so no one could surpass him? Beside even among the most powerful demons what I'm doing right now is completely forbidden."

"And were just abusing it?"

"Like a redheaded stepchild… No offence."

"None taken, but if I've become so powerful maybe I should head back to the Black Temple now."

"With great power comes great risk of getting yourself dead, kid. You might be able to hold your own toe to toe against Illidan, but he has an army and knows a lot more techniques then you do. "

"Like what?"

"Well for starters he can fly, you can't. I'm sorry kid, but you're not-"

"Don't, don't say it."

" -you're not ready to face Illidan. But Tempest Keep is a good place to start, not just to find your mom but a lot demons we could feed off that will enhance our fel magic."

Redworm was coming into the Dragonmaw Fortress and the front guard came and stopped him, "State your business, demon hunter." One of the orc guards demanded.

"I need to speak with Zuhuled, your chieftain." Redworm stated.

"He's just over that hill, I will send a massager and tell you're here." The orc pointed

Redworm walked past them, "Why you just told me where he was."

"You idiot you were supposed to send word first then give him directions to the chieftain." One orc said to the other.

"Wait demon hunter, you not supposed to go any farther until we send word that you're here."

"You know I could kill you both and Illidan wouldn't care right?" Redworm stated still walking away.

"Ha, that would create tension on our already fragile alliance between the Illidari and the Dragonmaw clan and we would be pushed into civil war if you just slaughtered us like cattle."

Redworm stopped with his back stilled turned to the orcs but looked at them and they both had there axes drawn, "Wow that actually sounded intelligent and makes not want to kill you, but tell me, what's your favorite internal organ?" he asked.

"Don't answer that, just let him go!" The other orc yelled.

Redworm laughed and put his hand on his hip, "Wow two smart ones; if I were you I would try to not stay on the front lines it would a shame to lose two soldiers of your caliber."

"Thank you, demon hunter." They both said and bowed their heads.

"Wow, you let another two go, you usually just kill whoever gets in your way, what is wrong with you today?" The voice of Xantam said.

"I don't know, maybe seeing images of my mother has made me go soft."

"How do you know for sure that that was your mother?" Xantam asked.

"I don't it just. I've never been that close to death before."

"A demon hunter that has never brushed with death before, I'm sorry if that seems a little odd."

"As a slave there were beatings, the hunger, the unrealistic exceptions, the exhaustion at the end of every night, and the fear that someone can just take you and do whatever they wanted to you. Most of the time you would just hope that you were to pathetic for people to notice you and at times I wished for death but the masters wouldn't even give me that."

"So that why you told those men to fire."

"Yes, while I trained under Illidan every other orc, elf, or demon I beat put me above the ones that couldn't beat me and I felt like I was finally in charge of the slaves. I suppose I was acting out against all my masters by treating the ones bellow me as slaves. Frankly I wanted them all to be below me, so no one could ever enslave me again." Redworm laughed, "Really there wasn't much difference between him and the other slaves master I had, other than the things I was doing were different."

"So that's why you challenged Illidan?"

"No, I challenged Illidan because I didn't like being ordered around and it turned out that everything he said to me was a lie, these runes, these visions, and of course you."

"Yeah kid, can't say it was your best plan, but I don't expect you to really think things through, but back to the near death experience."

"Well this is my first taste at true freedom, not under a master that gives beatings. At that moment I said 'kill me' I didn't think I was going to regret it."

"But you did, you do, right?"

"Yes, Death showed me a memory of her, when I was almost killed by my father and showed me that someone will miss me if I died."

"Can I help you with something, elf?" Redworm heard a voice behind him as he was talking to his inner head demon.

Redworm looked over at the orc and half smiled, "Yeah Zuluhed, the first thing you can do is go die and save me the trouble."

Zuluhed scoffed, "We in strict orders not to let in any demon hunters in this post, weakling. So maybe you better high tail it out of here before you get on my last nerve."

Redworm held up his fist in a fighting position, "Well trust me you don't want to get in my way. So why don't you hand over a Nether Drake and I'll be on my way." He ordered.

Zuluhed put up his fist too, "Well come on I got the keys, bring your mana sucking ass over here and try to take one."

The orc rushed over and punched Redworm across the jaw but Redworm used the momentum to put a spinning hook kick to the orcs face. Redworm looked at the orcs face and saw he cut on the area he hit, "First blood asshole."

"Maybe you better check again." The orc pointed out.

Redworm bit his lip and tasted his own blood and touched his hand to his lip and saw there was indeed blood on it, "Damn it all." He said and laughed. Redworm and the orc connected there punches by hitting each other in the fist hard and a range of punches to the face and body continued. Redworm was shorter but faster and the orc was stronger but wasn't completely overpowering Redworm. None of them blocked, they just kept beating each other up putting bruises and cuts on each other face and body with their fist, but Redworm caught the orcs arm and punched the back of his elbow and triceps trying to break the orcs arm. The orcs arm went limp and on the same side Redworm came up with an uppercut with all his might. But he backed his head away dodging the attack but Redworm grabbed the orc by the the back of his neck and put his knee in his chin, but the orc hit him across the face with the broken arm and knocked Redworm to the side on the ground. "That was dirty, faking injury and waiting until I left myself open." Redworm said as he wiped the blood from his mouth still on the ground.

"You never did learn Red." The orc grabbed Redworm by the wrist, picked him up, hugged him and let him go, "Red, how the hell have you been, I thought they didn't let you people out."

"Wait a second, when you said 'beating' you were being literal?" The demons voice in Redworm's head asked.

"Yeah I got fired; I was hoping you could help me get back on my feet until I landed another job." Redworm joked.

Zuluhed thought back, "Not too many openings here, unless you were willing to strip down to your small clothes and dance the 'coconut tree' for tips."

"Hey." Redworm pointed his finger at him, "Hey, that dance it harder than you think, and only if I get to wear a pretty dress."

Zuluhed laughed, "Seriously, I can't let you take a Nether Drake. Word came down that you were still alive and if anyone sees you just flying off on one I'll most likely be dead the next day. Why do you need one in the first place?"

"I need to go to Tempest Keep." Redworm answered.

Zuluhed rolled his eyes, "Oh please don't tell me you're siding with that sneaky blood elf Keal'Thus Sunstrider."

Redworm looked at Zuluhed questionably, "I thought we were on the same team?"

Zuluhed looked away and breathed in, "Yeah Illidan knows that he plans on betraying him."

Redworm shrugged, "What? Why? I guess that explains why haven't gotten many blood elf recruits and why Illidan got so mad about me killing one of his blood elf girls. Oh speaking of killing, those guards on the front didn't even try to stop me from coming in."

Zuluhed rolled his eyes, "If they would have tried to stopped you wouldn't have you killed them anyway?" he asked.

"No." Redworm tried repressed a smile, "Maybe, okay yes, but things have changed since we last met."

"Yeah I can tell you graduated to two warglaives now and you flavor your left arm, but maybe you should ask Keal'Thus why he plans on betraying Illidan."

"Well I'm not going to be able to do anything without a Nether Drake."

"I'm sorry Red I can't help you."

Redworm paused, thought, and looked around, "What about that drake, it doesn't look like the others." he looked at the shining blue dragon that was chained by the edge of the fort.

"That's because it's not a drake, that a dragon, and yeah she might give you enough cover to fly out of here unnoticed, but no one can mount her."

"Have you tried hitting her, that uses to work for me?" Redworm asked.

Zuluhed laughed, "Yeah it uses to, I heard things about you. Hours in those discipline rooms and not a peep. In that she's a lot like you."

Redworm thought back and thought about Illidan, "You can lie to her and tell her that following you is for the greater good and will save all mortal races in the universe from the Burning Legion."

"I can hear you, you know!" the dragon spoke.

"She speaks?!" Redworm asked in surprised.

The dragon nodded, "Yes and I can also see and listen." The dragon continued.

"Zuluhed can I have a moment with her?" Redworm asked.

Zuluhed looked at him questionably, "What? No, if she can understand then she should know what I'll do if she doesn't submit."

"Let me speak to her." Redworm insisted.

Zuluhed scoffed, "You got five minutes and only because were friends, after that I want you gone. If you can convince her to submit to the Dragonmaw clan I'll pick you up someplace secluded and that the best I can do for you."

Redworm walked up to the big blue dragon, "You people are all the same you think I will submit to someone that would, beat, starve, and enslave my children." She said.

Enslave, the word hurt like a punch to the gut. Redworm looked at her eye and face from the beatings they gave her, "What did you say?" He asked.

The dragon looked out in the distance, "I see them every day, and I feel there pain, there struggle, there desire to be free, to fly and hunt peacefully, I want to free them. I want them to know that I still love them even if they don't remember me. Please, you must free my children." Redworm saw the visions of his mother as a baby "Are you crying?" The dragon asked, "I feel so much pain in your heart, why would you be friends with someone that would take a mother away from her children." Redworm couldn't hold it in anymore, tears were falling from his eyes, he had given up on hope so many times that he would ever be free, wished for death because he felt like no one would miss him but his slave masters, because they would have to buy another slave to do there work, but this dragon looked at her children with tears in her eyes trying to tell them in some way that she hadn't given up hope on freeing them. It made him feel like his mother might still be out there, that maybe she might have been watching like this dragon. He looked around and saw the Nether Drakes they kept in being cages, the beatings and screams, some were being dragged and choked with magical chains and the whelps that he found to be cute only to see them blasted with shadow magic by their taskmasters.

"Why would they do this?" Redworm asked.

The dragon pointed her noise at the sky and Redworm saw one of the foul fel orcs beating one of the mature Nether Drakes as he flew from one side to the other. Redworm walked toward her, he looked around as the riders glanced over once or twice, fell on his knees, put his face in the ground, covered his face, and cried with his voice.

Zuluhed heard him and showed up, walked close with his boot near his face. Redworm slowing lifted his head with rage and tears in his eyes, he clinched his teeth, "She has that effect on some people," Zuluhed stated, "never thought you were the type though."

In a flash Zuluhed drew his axe and brought it down and Redworm head but he caught it with his hands cutting through his flesh and bones. The muscles in Redworms arms began to grow and he left up the axe, "Changing into your demon form Redworm, how long can you keep that up, five, ten seconds at the most. You're not the first Demon Hunter I've killed and you won't be the last."

Zuluhed screamed and turned red and he had more strength to come down with his axe, but Redworm body continued to change and grow. The changes were just as painful as they were before but it was overshadowed by all of Redworm's blinding rage. "You're going to let her go and you're going to free every single Nether Drake and whelp you've enslaved." He screamed.

"You're insane!" Zuluhed spit in his face.

Redworm felt his legs break and rebuild and now he was twice as tall as Zuluhed, Redworm grabbed Zuluhed's axe, kicked him to the floor, and threw his axe on the ground, and bone spikes came out of his forearms. "Riders to my aid!" Zuluhed ordered.

The Dragonmaw riders attacked Redworm like bats and there spears went into his body, Redworm bone spikes grew four meters long and he slice the Nether Drakes apart. Some of them fell on their backs and feet, some of died on impact, some fell on broken legs but they all met Redworm's forearm spears when they hit the ground. Redworm was surprised how fast this form was but he couldn't glade with his wings. He felt his sheer weight as he stomped around freeing Nether Drakes and killing there Dragonmaw masters. He came back up to the top of the tower. "Dragon where is Zuluhed?" he asked voice still deep and beastlike. He felt something go through and break the spikes on his back and an axe went into his back.

"You held that form for a long time Redworm, I'm impressed." Zuluhed said.

Redworm grabbed Zuluhed with his huge hands and put his forearm spike through his armor and Zuluhed screamed out in pain, "Red, what have you become, your a monster."

Redworm had a pain convolution as another spike came through his body, "You're the monster, slave keeper." And he threw him off the cliff that over looked the whole fort. Redworm looked out in the distance and was about to run back and run to free more Nether Drakes "Wait where you going, you've been holding this form for more than ten minutes?" Xantam stated.

"I have to save more." Redworm said in his head.

"You not going to make it kid, a spike if going to go through your heart of you keep this up" Redworm was indeed covered in spikes and another came out.

Redworm looked out into the distance, "I'll jump, I might be able to save a few more."

"No kid, you going to shatter like glass if you jump. You can't hold this form for so long or it will kill you."

"I have to try." He continued to walk forward from the cliff.

Redworm was about to jump off and before he could the dragon caught him with her teeth and threw him back. Redworm fell back flat and felt his body retract some of the spikes, but they were still painful. She breathed magical blue fire on him to ease his pain as the spikes reversed and he went back into a high elf again and lost consciousness.

Redworm woke up with white linen in front of his eyes and a warm feeling around his body he could move his body and it still hurt from all the spikes, but he was alive, but this time he couldn't walk. "Is he going to make it?" he heard a familiar voice say.

"Why do you have to risk your life so much, why do you have to be so reckless?" Xantam paused "…Don't think of anything right now kid, just rest and we'll make it through this." Xantam said.

"Let the healers do their jobs, but he was in rough shape when they brought him here." Redworm went back to sleep.

Redworm felt something that felt like singing while he body was covered in bandages he opened his eyes and saw white with black and gray faded silhouettes of people, horses, and elves walking across a landscape. He remembered what this was. Keal'Thus's campaign to free his people and find a cure for their mana addiction but he couldn't see them. The sound of footsteps on harden sand that would only leave prints for people carrying loads, but he could see it now. Sort of see the images of the exhausted elves as they walked, as he sat in his cage, there black and white images showing how weak and sickly his people had become and yet they had overcome so many odds. Sided with the naga, escaped execution, and fleed to this wasteland to aid Illidan Stormrage from his hunters, they were tired, dying, and starving. Redworm could now see all of it. Just heard that the lock on his cage did not fasten.

I remember I was treated like a pit dog in all since of the word. Because I couldn't see, but I could track with my smell, the mana signature elves gave off, and hear them to the point that I could pick up on figures. There is, was, a memory of the past, everything I missed with these new eyes. The naga, the people, the flag banners, the army Illidan put together to free the brokens world that was under the thumb of Magtheridon. I wasn't there, I ran, I felt that first chance of freedom, killed my former master, and I ran for as long as I could, but even though I was blind I could still fight. Killed two fel orcs and took their axes, but I did take some bad falls while on the sands of Hellfire Peninsula. It's hard to feel out a place that was mostly sand and when on hard roads I knew dangerous people would find me. I knew when they came, I could feel, and smell their arcane signatures. I could taste the fel energy that swelled in the fel orcs vains and the click of teeth as the predators approached. On sand though, I had to walk on all fours but most part, the dangerous things left me alone, but I don't know how many days I might have wasted, days I spent crawling in a circle, why there were some many cliffs or how far they went down. I should have died a hundred times and this feeling I felt, this since of freedom did not taste good anymore, and l longed for my cage where I had food, water, and mana.

"How long do you plan on staying like this?" A voice asked

I jumped to my feet and clanged my axes together but the image wasn't clear there was nothing on the ground just the sound of the wind blowing down the cliffs. I could smell something but it was faint it didn't feel monstrous or even big, a bird maybe, but most birds don't talk. I had heard voices before, I wrote it off as more hallucinations from the heat, and then I heard the clomp hoofs on the sand. A pegasus maybe… I heard they all died at the Sundering but were they here, on this new world? "You're blind, how have you managed to survive this long?"

The voice asked. I was considering a Draenei or one of the Broken maybe, they always had food and water. I had been within earshot to hear what would they do to the orcs in this place, feed them, bring them back to their base, imprison them, and later decide to execute. I knew someone was there so I pretended to be weak and helpless and buried my axes in the sand, "Please help, I'm so thirsty." I said in a raspy voice and coughed. I couldn't help but hear the sound of wind blowing through something like a kite or a blanket in the wind.

I heard something far to my feet, "Can you bring it to me, I'm blind you see." I felt around the dirt, but I knew where it was. It walked toward me, "How did you manage to survive this long elf? I heard rumors there…. " But he was close enough now. I got a strong grip on my axes and swung them at the figures legs but felt the blade go into hoof not shin bone. The figure jumped back but I pressed the attack, I could hear it jump back but it was so far, but how I wondered. I heard him breathing even over the wind and I ran toward it with a double overhead strike it was blocked with a blade or a shield, the clang of steel made a sound that sounded like both. Then that loud flap sound again, "So that's how you managed to survive, robbing the people that try to help you."

It was from above, but it wasn't a mount I would have heard something that sounded like a hippogriff or a griffin, "How many of you are here?" I asked.

"Just me." It said, "Redworm, I think your name is, you killed your master and have been out here ever since. Even managed to kill the blood elves that were hunting you."

"They reek of rotten fruit makeup and bad hair product! I can smell them a mile away! How are you moving around like that? " I continued to feel out the area.

"You mean flying? I have wings." It said.

"Have Draenei learn to sprout wings?" I asked.

"Do I sound like a Draenei to you?" He asked.

"You move like one! The hoofs."

The voice had a sigh of realization. "Oh right, no. I'm Kaldorei, but I've gone through some changes over the past year or so. Long story really."

"How do you know who I am?" I retort, standing to my feet as I heard the figure stomp down on the ground.

"Kael'thas told me about you. At first they sent hunters to try to retrieve you, then more elves to kill you and all that Kael'thas hunters have given him was excuses and corpses."

"So now they send some kind of fel magic, elven abomination, with wings to finish the job? Because I wouldn't hear or smell them coming?" I heard I sign of shock come from him, "I've killed birds before, " I continued "and the only reason we're talking is because I've never felt anything like you before and now I'm being hunted by Kael'thas's special flying night elf soldiers." I flapped my arms. "So I guess I'm going to have to kill you, keep an ear out for the sky, and find a way out of here."

I heard the figure bust out in laugher, "What's so funny?" I asked.

"You think… " He couldn't control himself, "I mean I know you're blind but…"

I swung my axe over his head and he caught my arm with his hand, I dropped it hoping the blade would cut something, but it fell on horns? I used my other axe to come low aiming for the kneecap he caught that one too. I pushed him back and put both of my hands in front him, "You are not prepared." He said.

I jumped up and pushed with both of my feet knocking myself backwards, he was stronger and faster, and he could fly. If he used any fel magic I might be able to dodge it, but I needed him to get close, I got into a back stance with the back of my hands facing him.

"I didn't come here to fight you Redworm." He walked toward me. I was focused, and I didn't believe him. I stood there with my hands out and I heard him stop, "You don't believe me. Fine, stay here a die for all I care, sooner or later the fel orcs will send a hunting party that even you can't hide from."

"I'll get out of here before they do." I protested.

"Then why were you crawling for so long?" He asked.

"I do that so people think I'm weak. If they see me they think I need help or I'm an easy target but I'm nether." I explained.

"No, you've been crawling for hours now, almost half the day. A hunter would at least be standing once or twice if they were hunting, but I think your lost."

"I'm not lost!"

"Then where are you?!"

I tear fell down my eye, "I'm not in a cage, I'm not being beaten, or raped, or tortured, or drilled or dieted or treated like cattle and I'm not somewhere my master needs me to be. I'm free." My voice was distorded by tears.

I heard him let him out a sigh, "10,000 years and I never knew what it was like to be a slave."

"10,000 how old are you?"

"11,300 give or take how old are you?"

"Sixteen." I answered.

"You managed to free yourself from imprisonment in that short amount of time, I wish I was resourceful as you when I was your age." His voice was sympathetic.

"Well there was a fight I remember and I escaped once I got here, I just didn't want to be a slave again so I killed them…"

"So that how you got good at it? At killing" He asked.

"No, I've always been killing since I was a child. My master took my eyes because I didn't kill someone that was my age, another kid, after that I couldn't see my targets, if they were young or old, at first it was hard but then it got easier than it was before."

"If I told you things are going to get better, if life wasn't just about pain and suffering, would you believe me?" He asked.

"No." I shook my head.

"Good, because it's not going to get better, but you don't have face these problems alone and I hope you believe me when I say, that I would never make you a slave again, because I need people to help me face this pain and suffering."

"Does that make it hurt less?" I asked

"It does."

"What's your name?" I asked

"It's Illidan, Illidan Stormrage." I heard him get closer, clear his throat, and pause, "Oh right." He realizes that I was blind. He grabbed my hand with his and shook it, "It's nice to meet you Redworm."

A dream, a good dream, the day I met Illidan.

"Odd place to be doing your morning Yoga, Illi-Danny. " Redworm teased.

Illidan had awoken from his jouney from the cosmos, he had found a place to attack, but Redworm, the thorn in his side had found him. The exciled demon hunter had found him when has was most vulnerable, but he didn't attack him, "How long have I been sitting here?" He asked.

Redworm crossed his arms defensively and looked away. "A while, I got hungry, so I killed a clefthoof while waiting for you to wake up."

It must have been a while, long enough for Redworm to track Illidan, fight through borem and doubt that Illidan might wake up before he got back. Hunt, make camp, cook, and eventual eat most of one of these beast. "So a day?" Illidan asked.

"And night it's still early in the morning and those people are after you." Redworm stated.

"Maiev Shadowsong and her Watchers," Illidan remembered, "well I have plans for her, but this would have been the perfect moment for her to strike me down. I appreciate you guarding me in this time of weakness."

Redworm nodded. Illidan smiled, got up, and he reached for Redworms shoulder as he was allowed to indulge in a friendly gesture to someone he thought he would never see again, since there was no one else there, but Redworm pulled away and pushed him back.

That supprised Illidan, if Redworm still considered him an enemy he had every opportunity to strike him down. In that moment Redworm kicked Illidan in the chest with both of his feet and knocked him back. Redworm circled around him like as a smaller predator would take down a larger prey. "Fight me, Illidan Stormrage." Redworm drew both of his warglaives.

Illidan was in a state of anger and confusion, "I'm willing to forgive you for your past transgressions Redworm, but if you continue this line of action I will-" But was interrupted as Illidan was smacked across the face with the blunt part of Redworms warglaives.

Illidan bearly flinched, even though a drop of blood dripped slowly down his face, he scowled down at Redworm as they were both in arms reach. Redworm was just as unflinching looking up at his former master with the same hate and disgust he had for all of his slave masters. "Don't... Ever... Come... Back." Illidan growled trying to keep himself from ripping the blood elf's head off with his bare hands.

"Kill me, if you think you can." Redworm stated nodding his head. He hooked Illidan across the jaw using his warglaves as if they were oversized boxing gloves, punched to him stomach, followed up with a upper cut to his face, and lunged forward with a cross punch that was caught by Illidan's larger stronger hands. He held his fist and warglaves tightly twisting and contorting the muscles in his arms.

"I warned you- " and punched Redworm in his face knocking him back on the ground dropping his warglaives. "You were the best of us." Illidan spoke as he walked forward.

"I am the best." Redworm spit blood on the ground, "Period. Ha, period." He laughed to himself as he looked at his own blood on the ground.

Illidan shook his head, repressed a smile as he got the joke, grabbed Redworm's arm and lifted him on his feet. He heard a cracking noise like the sound of a hundred popping knuckles or breaking bones and saw that Redworm free arm was the size of tree trunk. "Let me show you." Redworm whispered.

Redworms let loose an uppercut to Illidan's gut that made him grunt and knocked him through the stone ceiling and landing on his shoulder on the roof. Redworm climbed out from the hole he made and was in full demon mode. He jumped several feet in the air and nearly stabbing Illidan with his forearm blades, before as Redworm could Illidan rolled out of the way. Redworm stood up and was now looking down a Illidan. "You better not disappoint me, Betrayer! Come on then." Redworms voice was deep and beastlike.

Illidan looked up at Redworm, he knew why he waited for so long, he summoned both of his warglaives and rushed toward the beast that had once been his friend.

Illidan would never let himself be bested in fair combat, he moved with technique as he spun with a back hand, a fury of fast stabs, back elbows, and shield strikes. Redworm stayed defensive being backed away several steps but ultimately striking down at Illidans forearm with his elbow and spun to back elbow him in his solar plexus making Illidan body go into contraction and then knocking him back with a side kick.

Illidan kipped up back to his feet and stabbed Redworm in the leg, then kicked him in the chest with his hoofed leg knocking him back and spun around kicking Redworm in the face.

They both rushed each other, each not wanting to give a inch, each putting there strong limbs forward. Time stood still for both of them as they made eye contact both realizing that they were at one point friends, now they weren't. They both limbs connected, Illidan warglaives and Redworms spiked fist made contact with each other jaw in a explosion of fel magic knocking them both backwards. Illidan landing on his hands and feet and Redworm against a wall.

Illidan walked forward warglaives in hand, the fel magic that came from both of them had partially set the building they were on on fire. Green flames loomed on the corner of each side of the building making no chances for escape. Illidan knew that he was never bested by anyone with warigliaces, but he had never seen really seen what Redworm could do unarmed. Even for as savage as Redworm bestial form was he didn't move with the brutal nature he had come to expect from from fel orcs. Illidan vaguely remembered his first fight with Arthas, "That won't happen again." he thought. If this fight took ten seconds or ten years he was going to finish it.

Redworm went to offensive fighting stance, Illidan flew up in the air and rushed Redworm with his wargliaves and it was blocked to the side bringing Illidan to the ground on his feet. Redworm kicked to his face, but Illidan ducked, Illidan swang toward Redworm's face with with the blunt part of his warglade. It was Redworm impulse to slip and his face was met with the sharpness of his blade but his elbow got caught with Illidan's blade. With Illidan other hand he sliced down a completely diagonal cut arcoss Redworm's midsection knocking him back. Illidan let out a fury of stabs that he knew were going to be blocked but continued. Redworm with both his hands grabbed one of Illidans arms attempted to trip him with his back leg. Anticipating, Illidan leaned his body sideways and kick him with both of his hoofed feet tripping Redworm making him land on his back. With a roar Illidan used that opportunity to jump up in the air stomp down with both of his hoofs.

Redworm rolled out of the way, while on the ground he kicked the side of Illidan's pelvic and followed up with another kick to Illidan's face knocking him back. With a beast like roar Redworm rushed Illidan with his spiked fist but was blocked and pushed away, with his other hand he pushed Illidan back and kicked toward his head. Illidan slipped forward and was back to back with Redworm, he let go of his warglaives reached behind himself and dug his sharp nails into Redworms neck and attempted to yank off his head. One pull, "He still to strong," Illidan thought to himself, so he settled for tossing him over his shoulder at the nearby wall. Redworm planted both his feet against the wall and pushed his pelvic into Illidans face, spun around his head, arched his back and catapulted Illidan to the bottom of the stadium. Dispite his wings he still fell two stories on his back but whatever it was something kept him going. Demon blood, elven adrenaline, he didn't care. Redworm followed, free falling arms open like Illidan's nearly lifeless body was going to break his fall. But he was up and he was charging fel magic to blast Redworm out of the sky. Redworm, realizing his fally reverted back into his elven form, but the speed was to great, he opened up his wings and the leathery demon skin came clean off. It slowed him down long enough to avoid Illidan fel blast but he still fell on the staduim floor breaking one of his legs. Redworm was a common blood elf now, he screamed has he held on to his broken leg.

Illidan laughed, "Even with all your power your nothing but a common mortal!" Illidan taunted.

Redworm breathed fast shallow breathes trying to will other transformation. This time it started from the feet up, Redworm stood up again. "Oh no you don't." Illidan said as he summoned his warglaives again, they appeared in his hands, but Redworm still rushed him even thought his transformation wasn't complete. Redworm with a strong jumping kick swinged toward Illidan's face, he step backed, Redworm with his other leg he spun to nail him with his heel, Illidan stepped back again. Same kick as before, Illidan lifted up his warglaives so the ends would end up going into his leg. Redworm screamed and attempted to put a fury of punches that were parryed with Illidans warglaices, each atttack in his elven form spilled red blood on Illidan's face and body. Illidan half thought that he maybe trying to drown him in his own blood. Illidan kicked him in the abdominal, came down with a axe kick, but was dodged. Illidan concentrated fel energy into his hoofs and kicked across, but Redworm ducked under it but was burned with fel magic. Illidan jumped up spun around with a flying kick it was blocked but the fel magic was taking effect and landed a good side kick to Redworms abdominal knocking him back a few yards. Illidan concentrated his fel magic again, just like when he attempted to blast him out of the sky.

Redworms eyes went wide, he dug his claws into the concrete floor and broke off a piece and threw it into Illidan's blast. Illidan jump over it and kicked Redworm in his defensve hands. Redworms transformation was complete again, but this time Illidan knew it's limits. Redworm started his fury of punches again but Illidan concentrated fel magic in his legs again. Redworm landed a few roundhouse kicks to Illidans face but it was weaker this time and Illidan still had so much power. His legs and hoofs were winning this fight, fel magic weaken Redworms bestiral form more then physical attacks. Illidan tossed both of his warglives into the air, Redworm looked up and Illidan concentrated fel into both of his fist, striking both Redworm's face and chest. Both of Illidan's warglaives landed into the ground standing upright, Redworm was knocked back and reverted back into a elf again. Illidan rushed Redworm putting his palm into his face, "I'm taking it back!" Illidan said as he drained Redworm's fel magic the same way he absorbed the power from the Skull of Gul'dan. Whatever power Redworm had he was going to take, it was power had nearly rivaled his own, and whatever he learned, it would help the rest of his illidari army. "Redworm served a good purpose for my ambition." he thought.

Until there was no traces of fel magic left he let him go. "I have spared your life but not as a act of mercy. You are nothing but a blind slave now. I will get one of the Broken to pick you up, good bye."

Illidan turned his back on him and he began to flap his wing and go airborne. "No!" Redworm screamed grabbed one of the warigliaces that was sticking out the ground and threw it at one of Illidans wings tearing through the leathery skin temporarily making it useless. Illidan fell only a few feet looked at Redworm and back at his wing he was in that stance he was in when he first met him. Both hands outward open palms facing his own face. Illidan remembered when he was powerless on all fours crawling on the ground.

"You are powerless, weak, Redworm, are you really this desperate to die?" He slamed the bottom of his fist into his palm.

Redworm didn't respond just held out his hands outword palms facing himself.

Illidan looked at his torn wing, it would take some time for it to heal, longer for him to use it to keep himself airborne, "If guess I do owe you this act of mercy, very well."

Illidan summoned his warglaives jumped up and rushed toward him. Redworm caught his striking hand with both of his hands pushing him off balance. Before he lost balanace Illidan kicked him with his back leg and it was blocked. Redworm threw a hook kick to Illidans head but he ducked under it. Redworm bent down and grabbing Illidans arms stay out of his striking way and Redworm striked with suprising amount of force with his palm to Illidan's ribs. Illidan spun around to strike but before you could build any force, Redworm had both of his hands of his striking arm staying out of the way of his other blade. Illidan push him away with his whole body and move his blade forward. Redworm lightly slapped them down getting out of the way of his cutting zone. Illidan furied with his blade moving forward Redworm quickly ducked under grabbing his wrist with one hand and elbowed him on the side of his ribs making him grunt and fall back. Still holding on to his fully extended arm, he striked the base of Illidan's elbow making him scream out in pain knocking one of the Warglaives in the air. Illidan's other hand he attempted a back hand strike Redworm but he duck underneath it, but Redworm broke his pace of attack by kicked Illidan in the chest knocking him back a few yards.

Illidan looked up and saw his falling Warglave, and saw Redworm snatch it out of the air. He smashed it into the ground letting out all the fel magic it was holding. leting green dust particles going in every direction. Redworm breathed it in deeply. "No. This is better." Redworm wispered to himself.

Rage overcame Illidan Stromrage, he rushed Redworm with all the fel magic he could muster, each blast from his hand and made a blast of burning fel energy go through the air, but that's all it hit. Just like before Redworm dodged and grabbed one Illidan arms with both hands tossing him over his shoulder and knee him on the top of his head while he was down. There went the other Warigliace, Illidan looked and it disperately as it bounce off the ground into the air and was caught by Redworm. Illidan called on his Warigliaces to come back to him but they didn't respond. Illidan got up and let out a fury of kicks thinking that Redworm wouldn't be able to catch them the way he had been doing with his arms, but he did. He lifted one of Illidan's legs slightly up throwing Illidan off balance and let a fury blazing fast stabs to Illidan abdomen and one hard one to his face. Redworm had Illidan's back against the wall, he held up his hand in defense, only to have his fel magic be drained out with his own blades, growing weaker with every strike. Redworm readied a final strike that could cut off his head but Illidan ducked under it.

Illidan was weak, as weak as he was before he took the Skull of Gul'Dan, he looked around as the green particles that contained the source of his power was taken away. He felt for his horns, wings, and hoofs. They were all gone, he was temporarily a night elf again. He could get his power back, but not without his blades, and not with this blind monster taking everything he worked for. He stood still, he didn't breathe, he didn't move, he would move silently so maybe Redworm couldn't find him. Redworm smiled, he rushed toward Illidan with his own warigliaces knocking him into a wall.

Redworm put Illidan's oversized warigliaces behind him, pulled something from his pocket and shot it into the air. It made a screeching noise and a exponsion of light.

In the distance Maiev Shadowsong and a group of her hunters made their way into the stadium. A large bird flew down next to Redworm, surrounded itself in black smoke, and transformed itself into the First Druid Malfurion Stormrage, "It nice to see you again Illidan, back to your normal self." He stated.

Illidan didn't say anything, he just looked around as Maiev and her group of Watcher surrounded him. "They are here in case you resist," Malfurion look around at the Watchers, "Come home, Illidan. There is more than enough evidence to clear your good name and the king of Stormwind is quite merciful."

Illidan looked away, there was cave that was clear but he didn't know where it lead. He backed away from him and a pool of red blood fell on the ground as he backed away, his back against the wall. He kicked one the Watchers to the side and ran toward the cave.

"Brother!" Malfurion stepped forward suddenly but was held back Maiev's arm.

"Let them work." she said.

Illidan ran with a swift speed he had missed for a while, he had normal feet. The area seemed to be clear, illuminated by purple sparkling lights and various torches and lamp post.

One of the Watchers blinked in front of him and sliced him across the mid-section knocking him backwards on the ground with his circle hooped blades. Another Watcher jumped up in the air and came down with her circle blade nearly stabbing Illidan in the back while was down, he rolled out of the way toward one of bowls of red fire and kicked it toward one of the Watchers. The Watcher sliced the bowl in half with precision bringing the blade downward. Illidan used that opportunity to punch the Watcher across the face with a right hook. Another Watcher came slicing downward toward Illidans arms. He backed away and let out a spinning hook kick that sent the Watcher spinning in the air.

A third Watcher came down with a flying kick, daggers in both hands, Illidan blocked his kick but was knocked back a few feet. Illidan block and parried the forearm areas of the dagger wielding Watcher, got close enough to put his hands around his head and twisted the skull off its spine. Illidan rushed the first Watcher pushing him back and backflip kicked him under the chin and plating both his feet into the second Watcher chest dropping him on his back. Illidan, lifted up one leg and crunched down on the Watchers skull and helmet as he would a large bug.

Four more Watchers ran into the cave each one ready to slice Illidan in half. Illidan back handspring away to avoid there strikes and using his momentum to back flip onto a ledge. But his eye sight wasn't clear. In midair one of the Watchers sliced him cross the chest and forehead and kick him into the ground before he could.

Illidan laid on the ground and two more Watchers blinked into the cave. Now Maiev Shadowsong was in the cave, in a higher area, arm crossed taking pleasure as her pack cornered their prey. Four archers blinked into both sides of Maiev.

Illidan got up, kicked one the attacking Watchers to push himself backwards, grabbed of the one white lamppost from it stone hinges, taking a piece of concrete with it, knock back another Watcher putting the heavy put end in his face. The lamp let out an electric buzz as Illidan held it like a quarterstaff. Illidan spun around the lamppost knocking the concrete into three of the Watchers. Planting down the lamppost, Illidan stood on it and hook kicked one the Watchers in the face, that was coming at his back. A second one came down with his circular blade, but Illidan blocked it with his heavy staff and used the concrete to trip the Watchers feet from under him, bring it back into another Watcher knee cap hearing it break as if made contact. Illidan stood on the concrete end, hook kicked the already injured Watch in the face. Using his momentum, he pulled the heavy polearm on his shoulder, knocking back more Watchers as he spun the pole around his neck, and finally smashing it down onto another Watcher's collar bone. With force Illidan swang the heavy end freeing the concrete from the pole and catapulting it into Maiev Shadowsong. She moved to the side, surprised and mesmerized at Illidan's technique and ferocity, but he still looked like a cornered dog.

The pole arm was lighter now, Illidan used it to block an incoming attack from a Watcher attacking with daggers. He hit the watcher in the leg, face, shoulder, extended out the pole into the Watchers chest, and finally hitting him in the face again. Illidan regretted that polearms were a weapon of pacifist it did not kill the Watcher he just attacked, but he still flurried with it like he had been using them for millenniums. Using momentum from the flurry he knocked one of the Watchers in the head and blocked a circular blade to his back. He strikes the backstabbing Watcher in the leg knocking him on the floor and strike the other Watcher in across face.

A third watcher came down with a circular blade, but Illidan blocked it with the center of his polearm and strike the Watcher in his back and followed to a strike to his face swinging it from the other side.

Illidan furried, smacked another Watcher in his head and holding the pole behind his back. The backstabber got up quietly, but Illidan jumped and brought down the pole with as much force as he could down on the Watcher's head insuring the kill.

Another four from all corners. One sliced at Illidan's leg but he rolled out the way. Illidan flurried downward with the polearm the Watcher that tried to cut his leg, knocking his circular blade out of his hand and throwing it into one of the four Watchers cutting him nearly in two, but using what motion that was left to land a shot to on another Watcher's face.

One of the Watcher was armed and sliced down with his blade but Illidan turned his back on him by putting the pole behind himself and blocking the attacking one and came down with full force to the unarmed watcher's head.

Two new Watchers joined the fray, one was slicing with the same overhead strike most of the Watchers started with. With one end, he tripped the last Watcher that was part of the original four, with his polearm and with one of the two new ones, he kicked the circular blade out the Watchers hand upwards. While the blade was in midair he knocked with his polearm into the circular blade and sent it into the chest of another Watcher. Finally pushing and extending the polearm into the last Watchers chest. His pole arm wasn't incredibly lethal, but the Watchers circular blades were.

Another five, showed up. "How many did Maiev have?" Illidan thought. "If she had an army this big with so many well trained soldiers I would have noticed." But then he remembered, he was in a mortal form. "The Watcher's she commanded must have come from the prison, it was probably the first time any of them saw combat." but he didn't relish the thought, he was still grossly outnumbered.

One of the Watcher's came in with an upward strike, it was a change of tactic, but it was blocked, but it actually sliced his polearm in half. The watcher backflip kicked Illidan in the chin knocking him backwards on the ground. One of the other Watcher jumped up in the air hoping to stab him in the ground with daggers. He rolled out of the way holding to his broken polearm. "No, not polearm." He thought. "Fighting sticks."

Illidan thought back and remembered the sparring sessions with his brother deep in the woods. They were one of the first weapons he learned how to use.

Mid thought, a Watcher sliced him in the back with one there circular blade pushing him into another Watcher. Illidan hit him three times onto the floor. He brandished his new improvised weapons in front of Maiev Shadowsong looking up at her. "Fire." Maiev ordered.

Six archers let loose a volley of arrows, Illidan stepped forward and parried them as he would with his Warglaives, but they weren't his warglaives, they were sticks, and he back handspring backwards in until he hit a wall. Five arrows went into his body missing vital organs, but protruded out of him letting more of his blood on the ground.

The pain was finally setting in to this mortal body. His lungs burned, his muscles ached, and the blood loss was making him feel dizzy. A memory, a life, before the Maelstrom, the first invasion of the Legion. He told his brother he was siding with the Legion, but he should remand on the side of Azeroth. His eye were still gold at that time. "Do you want us to be on opposing battlefields for all eternity?! It doesn't make sense. Why brother?" Malfurion asked.

"You are just going to have to trust me brother. Hate me if you wish, but this is the path I've choosen." Illidan he remembered. He remembered Malfurion holding out his hand for a brief second like if there was some way he could force him to stay. Illidan looked back at him "Trust me." Illidan said to him.

Illidan remembered that, there was still so much that needed to be done and he was so close to reaching his goal, he couldn't die here.

He rushed forward and slamming a fighting stick straight into a Watchers helmet and eye. Climbed up the ledge where Maiev was, lifted up one the archers over his head and threw him down the ledge. Kicking another Watcher in the face and Illidan slamed his fist into Maiev face. It was defected with magic and he was thrown off the ledge and slammed into the back wall.

More Watchers came, but with killing intent he let loose a strong punch to one there faces, and an elbow and side kicked the predictable back stabber. A Watcher used an upper ward strike with a circular blade and Illidan dodged and grabbed the weapon from his hand and elbowed the Watcher in the face.

One of the Watcher's furried with his circular blade, but Illidan had one too. Illidan blocked three of his attacks and slammed the bladed side into his leg cutting it off.

Another two daggers wielding Watchers came to the front and back of Illidan, he lunged forward with the circular blade, and kicked the another at his back leg, but then followed through to cutting head off the Watcher that was behind him.

The Watcher that lunged first at Illidan had a hidden dagger and stabbed it into Illidan's arm. With Illidan's other arm he sliced the Watcher that stabbed him completely across from collar bone to pelvis, but he still had a dagger in his arm and he couldn't just fight through that pain as he tried to use his stabbed arm. Illidan grunted as he pulled it out, one bloody dagger in one hand, and a circular blade in the other.

Mercilessly Illidan sliced through a team of five of them, the archers jumped off the ledge as they came down with circular blades at the ready, slicing at Illidan's head. Illidan jump out of the way onto the wall Maiev was standing above, kicked onto a Watcher chest and slice his throat with his dagger as Illidan used his body for leverage. Jumping off his victim Illidan spun around, came down, and sliced the other Watcher clear down the center in half. Illidan ran up the side of the wall onto the ledge Maiev was on, he jumped off it to kick her, but she blinked backwards out of the way. Illidan didn't let up, he continued to slice at her with her own weapons, but she blinked behind him out the way of every strike.

In her place two Watchers, Illidan stab one in the chest with a dagger and cut off his head with the circular blade. Two Watcher climbed onto the Ledge with chains, they tossed them at Illidan's at forearms wrapping round him, another around his neck. He grunted as he tried to pull away toward Maiev, but they pulled Illidan to the floor with their chains. He tried to stab one of them, but he was pulled away by the chains.

Illidan dropped both of his blades, grabbed one of the chain with both hands and pulled one the Watcher toward him. Then pulled in the opposite direction again, slamming him onto the floor going the other way. New chains were wrapped around his foot and his other arm by two more Watchers. Dragging all the Watchers behind him Illidan rushed toward Maiev, she casually walked past him clopping him in the back of the head rendering him unconscious. Maiev walked over Illidan for a few seconds, what for her was a hour pure bliss, picked him up and lifted him in the air, "We have the Betrayer!" She shouted.

The Watcher's that were left just looked at her, dissatisfied with the capture, they were in fact, from the prisons, and only heard stories of who Maiev Shadowsong was. More importantly how high the dead pool of her soldiers was. Now it was flooded. The Watchers cared for injured and the dead, but there was no cheering that Maiev would have come expect from her own team.

"Just go. We would have lost a lot less people if you would have joined the fight sooner." One of them said.

"Fine but know that you will rewarded and remembered for all time." Maiev said overjoyed. The Watcher pointed toward the outside of the cave, she carried her prize outside, and let the prison Watchers clean up the mess.

Redworm eyes went wide as he saw that a third of Illidan's body was covered in red blood and took him away from her. He held Illidan face close to his, "He's not breathing." Redworm was in a panic, "Malfurion he's not breathing!"

He laid Illidan body down next Malfurion. Malfurion kneeled, looked at his little brother's corpse, placing his hand under his head, "You said you were going to arrest him, not kill him!" Malfurion shouted, tears distorting his voice.

"He was alive, for a time." Maiev said with a glimmer of satisfaction.

Redworm was pressing into Illidan chest, but Malfurion push him away. "Redworm stop, I'll handle this. Just make sure she doesn't come anywhere near my brother." He asked.

Redworm stood up and walked toward Maiev, "Wait, this was your idea in the first place." Maiev pleaded, "If it wasn't for you-"

Redworm smashed an oversized spiked fist across Maiev jaw knocking her out cold.

Malfurion breathed out a yellow light into Illidan mouth and Illidan coughed, Malfurion healing spells closed his wounds and mended his bones, but Illidan's breathing with quick and shallow, "He's breathing. Come on Illidan were going home." Malfurion picked up Illidan.

Redworm grab onto Malfurion shoulder, "Where are you going to take him?"

"To Moonglade, it's free of Azerothian politics, at least until he recovers." Malfurion answered with optimism.

"Brother... You... Have to trust me." Illidan whispered.

Redworm shook his head, "He's lost to much blood, he'll go into shock, and then he'll die. You need to take him back to the Black Temple and give him the Skull of Gul'Dan, that's how he'll recover."

"He'll transform back into a demon again, why would you even suggest that?!" Malfurion shouted.

"I would take him there myself but..." Redworm thought back, "Malfurion it will take hours for A'dal to open a portal to Moonglade, we don't have that kind of time. When you get to the Dark Temple look for a Broken named Akama he'll know what to do." He explained.

Tears were falling in Malfurion's eyes as he cradled Illidan as if he were a newborn, "Is there really no other way?" He asked.

"Even if you could get him Moonglade there no guarantee he'll make a full recovery. Azeroth needs the Lord of Outland, I trust that now. You need to trust him too." Redworm explained.

Malfurion looked into Redworm face and back into his brother's, he nodded his head, and in an explosion of black smoke Malfurion transformed into and great bird of prey, holding Illidan in his talons, and flew away.


End file.
